The new team 7
by Onyx Lexa
Summary: What if Hinata was on team 7 instead of Sakura? What would have changed? Read to find out. More chapters coming soon! NaruHina
1. Who's on my team?

Snore…

It's a wonderful morning of the last day of the academy. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the wind-

RRRRRRRIIIIIINNNNNNGGGGGGGG!

"GODDAMNIT!" Naruto pounded the alarm clock with his fist. He sighed then yawned and stretched then grinned.

"Today's the day when I'm finally gonna become a ninja!" he said happily.

He jumped out of his bed and ran to his bathroom to quickly brush his teeth and wash his face. He impatiently waited for the water to boil and then poured it into his cup noodles while he changed. After quickly finishing his noodles he threw on his headband that Iruka gave him and made sure it's tied properly. Zipping up his jacket he locked his door and dashed to the academy.

When he got there some of the students were already there and some were just arriving. He got into the classroom and took a seat. Not long after Shikamaru came into the classroom and spotting Naruto he walked up to him.

"What are you doing here? You failed the test didn't you?" he said in a lazy tone.

"Well, open your sleepy eyes Shikamaru! Don't you see my headband? I passed too and we'll be training together, how do you like that? "Naruto replied cockily.

"Huh? What a drag…"

A couple rows above them a girl was sitting and watching them. Her big pearly eyes glistening, her blush intensifying and her fingers fidgeting. " _Naruto passed! Thank Goodness!"_

Naruto was still grinning "…And it looks so darn good on me! Believe it!"

"Oh, Naruto…" Hinata quietly whispered, her cheeks getting redder. But she was distracted as two kunoichis burst through the door.

"I'm first!" They both yelled simultaneously then got into an argument about it.

Naruto looked up and his eyes met Sakura's. He blushed and waved at her.

"Hey, good mornin' Sakura! What's up?" he said happily.

"Move it!" Sakura yelled in annoyance and pushed him out of the way looking at Sasuke dreamily. "Good morning Sasuke…mind if I sit next to you?"

"Back off, forehead! I'm sitting next to Sasuke!"

"I was here first!" Sakura yelled back at Ino.

"I got into the classroom before you, everyone saw it!"

"Actually I got here before either of you, I'm sitting next to Sasuke!"

"No, I am!"

As girls one by one joined the argument Naruto was still on the ground where Sakura had pushed him. His brows furrowed in anger and just as he was about to get up and jump in front of his rival he felt a soft hand on his shoulder.

"A-are you ok Naruto?" Hinata quietly and sweetly asked him.

"Yeah, I guess I'm fine…can I sit next to you?" He asked directing his gaze towards her.

Hinata felt her heart flutter and her face heat up "O-of course…" she managed to stammer out.

He got up and they walked up to the highest row in the classroom and Naruto sat next to her and crossed his arms on the table putting his chin in between them. She looked at him shyly then she took a deep breath and with all her courage she decided to try to talk to him.

"Are y-you ok? You l-look sad?"

"Why is he so much better than me? What does Sakura see in him? He's arrogant and an asshole, I'm much better than him!"

Hinata gulped "Y-you are…she just does not know you…s-so she does not know how n-nice you are…"

"Huh? You mean that? You think I'm nice?"

Before she had the chance to answer Iruka walked into the classroom holding a paper in his hands. "Everyone please take your seats and girls, please get off of Sasuke…" He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright…as of today you are all ninjas, but you are still just genin. All of you will be split into teams of three and you will have a jounin as your sensei…

Then the entire classroom started chatting about the announcement and they all had different thoughts:

" _Teams of three, that will only slow me down…"_

" _I hope I'll be with Sakura and anybody but Sasuke! I don't care who just_ _ **not**_ _Sasuke!"_

" _Cha! I'm going to be with Sasuke, he's mine!_

" _Oh my…I h-hope I'm with Naruto…"_

" _What a drag…"_

 _Munch, munch, munch._

"Ahem!" Iruka coughed stopping the chatter.

As he announced the teams one by one the cries of disappointed fan girls could be heard, then he got to the last few teams:

"Team 7: Naruto Uzumaki…Sasuke Uchiha…and…Hinata Hyuga!"

Sasuke stayed emotionless as always but Naruto sure as heck didn't.

"Why do I have to be stuck in a team with this jerk?!" He yelled angrily standing up and pointing at the Uchiha.

"Because, in order to balance out the team we put Sasuke, the best student of the year with you, the worst student of the year. Iruka replied with his hands on his hips.

While the other students laughed at him he sat back down and his eyes met Hinata's.

"Well, at least you think I'm nice right?" he asked her in a concerned tone.

She nodded lightly smiling at him.

"Just don't get in my way…loser." Sasuke replied coldly.

Naruto glared daggers at him "You can't boss me around, got it jerk?!"

"Hn…you just get further away from me loser." Sasuke replied not looking at him, but his head snapped back at him after Naruto replied:

"And you'll just get that stick further up your ass!"

"What did you say, dead-last?!"

"Ya deaf?" Naruto grinned making Hinata giggle and the rest of the class laughing at Sasuke for the first time ever.

Sasuke glared at him with his teeth clenched not knowing how to reply to that.

However, Naruto did.

"Why do ya keep staring at me? Good looks aren't contagious."

Now the whole class was really laughing. Even Iruka chuckled. Sasuke just turned away from everyone an angry expression on his face.

After the laughter stopped Iruka announced the rest of the teams and told them where to meet their sensei. In the end team 7 was the only team left in the classroom. Naruto was walking up and down the classroom occasionally peeking through the door wondering why their sensei was so late. Hinata was sitting in the first row on the left playing with her fingers. She couldn't believe her luck, she was on a team with her crush just like she had hoped for. She didn't notice Sasuke looking at her.

" _Hn... at least I didn't get stuck with one of those banshees…"_ (AN: banshee – an Irish legend, a female screaming creature…I think…)

However, his thoughs were interrupted when he heard a dragging sound. Looking up he saw Naruto standing on a chair placing a chalk eraser in between the door opening.

"Heh, that'll show him."

"Idiot, our sensei is a jounin, there's no way he's going to fall for a boobie trap…"

"Hihihi, you said 'boobie'!" Naruto laughed.

Sasuke sighed "Idiot…"

At that moment the door opened and a gray haired man walked in covered in chalk powder.

"Ha! You fell for it!" Naruto laughed.

" _Is…Is he mad? It was funny though_ …" Hinata thought trying to suppress a giggle.

Sasuke was eyeing the man " _He fell for that? Is he really a jounin?"_

Finally Kakashi spoke up "Meet me on the roof in five minutes…oh…and…

…you are a bunch of idiots…"


	2. A dream come true

Being called idiots was not the first impression they were hoping to make. Team 7 were sitting on the roof of the academy building. Above them were the faces of the Great Hokages.

"So…" Kakashi started "First the introductions. Tell me about yourselves, things you like, hate, goals, hobbies, that kind of stuff."

"Why don't you introduce yourself first?" Naruto added annoyed.

"Ok…well, I'm Kakashi Hatake, things I like…hmm…things I hate…I don't feel like telling you…my hobbies…I have lots of hobbies… goals…haven't thought about it… your turn."

Naruto was even more annoyed now "He just told us his name…" he whispered to Hinata. She nodded, not bothering to even blush because she was actually annoyed too.

"Alright, blondie you first."

Naruto frowned at the nickname but continued ''I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I like Ichiraku ramen and cup ramen! I hate the three minutes you have to wait after you pour the water in the cup. My hobbies are pranks and gardening I guess…and my dream is…to be the greatest Hokage ever! Then the whole village will have to look up to me! Believe it!"

Hinata was smiling at the first part of Naruto's speech but blushing at the second part.

" _Gardening? H-he l-likes g-gardening too…m-maybe we could-"_ But her thoughts were interrupted.

"Now it's the young lady's turn." said Kakashi.

Hinata blushed "Oh!...well…I am Hinata Hyuga, I like cinnamon buns and… zenzai and g-gardening also… I dislike shrimp and crab…my hobbies are pressing flowers and…my goal is to m-make my f-father proud of me…

"Ok. Now you…" Kakashi said looking at Sasuke.

"Hn…I'm Sasuke Uchiha, I hate a lot of things and I don't really like anything…my goals are to restore my clan and destroy a certain someone…"

Naruto was looking at him with a scared expression on his face." _What an emo creep…I hope it's not me he wants to destroy…"_

To some girls Sasuke might have seemed cool and mysterious but Hinata didn't thinks so. _"Oh dear…he will be very hard to approach…"_

And neither did Kakashi _"Just what I thought…not good…"_ he sighed "Ok…that's it for today, meet me at the training ground 4 tomorrow at 7 AM, bring your weapons and don't have breakfast…so you don't puke…dismissed." He said with his one-eyed smile and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"I'm out of here…" Sasuke said and jumped over the roofs and quickly got out of sight.

"Tch…and so much for being a team…" Naruto said annoyed. " Hey Hinata, you got anything to do now?" he said looking at her flashing a smile.

She blushed "Oh, umm, no...I don't…" she said looking away twiddling her fingers.

"So how about ramen? My treat."

Hinata's heart skipped a beat and her face flushed. She couldn't believe it, was her crush asking her on a date?

"Umm…sure." She quickly said.

Naruto was beaming "Alright! Ichiraku's it is! Come on, you'll love it I promise!" He said with a big grin grabbing Hinata's hand and dragging her in the direction of the ramen stand.

" _Oh my…oh goodness…oh dear…he…he's h-holding my hand…h-his h-hand is so warm…don't faint, you can't faint!"_

The inner Hinata was freaking out the entire walk to Ichiraku. The aroma of cooked ramen snapped her out of her thoughts. Naruto lifted the flap and they entered greeting Ayame and Teuchi.

"Hey old man, hey Ayame! Two bowls of miso with extra pork!" Naruto yelled happily.

The two turned around to greet them and saw Naruto and Hinata holding hands.

"I see you brought a companion" Teuchi said. "Your girlfriend?" Ayame added.

"Huh? Oh no, Hinata and I are just friends. Teammates actually!" Naruto said not letting go of her hand even after they took a seat.

"Oh?" Ayame replied "Wait, aren't there supposed to be 3 of you?"

"Yeah but guess who that is? It's Sasuke! Can you believe it?! I didn't ask him to come but I know that even if I did he'd say 'hn' which means 'no' so I didn't bother." Naruto said angrily.

Ayame giggled. "Oh, dear. You're on a team with Sasuke?" Ayame asked then looked at Hinata "Is he a pain like Naruto says he is?"

Hinata didn't know how to answer. The only thing she was thinking about was that her fingers were still intertwined with Naruto's.

"Well…" she managed to stammer out "He is nothing l-like Naruto…to put it like that…"

"And" Naruto interrupted "Hinata said she thinks I'm nice so that means that Sasuke **is** an ass. She's the only girl **not** after the bastard so that means she's smarter and better than all the other girls and that's why I wanted you to meet her!" then he smiled at Hinata.

Ayame smiled, she was glad Naruto found someone who liked him.

Hinata's face flushed and she felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. Naruto thought she was smart and better that the other girls, but, is she better than Sakura? Her question was about to get answered as Ayame asked:

"All the girls? Even Sakura?" she smirked at Naruto.

Hinata's breath caught in her throat, she slowly turned her head towards him.

Naruto thought for a moment then grinned "Yeah! Even better than Sakura!"

Hinata's heart skipped a beat and she couldn't stop a small tear from running down her cheek. She hid her face in her hands hoping to hide the growing blush which kept getting darker as Naruto continued:

"She doesn't hit me like Sakura does, and she's nice and quiet and she didn't make fun of me like the others did. I'm glad she's on my team but Sasuke just ruins it. Plus, he's got this ambition of 'destroying somebody' I seriously don't know why girls are drooling over him, I mean, I'm better than him, I'm nicer, funny and I'm cuddly too. Believe it!"

Naruto huffed, he let go of her hand and crossed his arms while the others giggled at him. After Hinata's face returned to it's normal ivory color their orders came and they quietly enjoyed their meal.

Even Hinata was enjoying it with an occasional 'Mmm…'which made Naruto smile.

He was glad she liked his favorite food, she was the first girl to say yes to his invitation.

He wondered why he didn't ask her before. He glanced at her. She was quietly nibbling on a piece of pork. Her hand reached out sliding her side bang behind her ear. Naruto realized that she's the only girl with short hair he knows.

Hinata saw that he stopped eating, turning her head in his direction their eyes met and she blushed again _"Was…was h-he l-looking at me?"_

"What is it Naruto?" she quietly asked.

Naruto smiled softly "You're really pretty, y'know?"

Hinata's eyes went wide, her blush intensified and her whole body started to shake.

The two were pulled out of their trance when Ayame let out a squeal "Awww…"

Naruto looked at Ayame and raised an eyebrow "What? She is."

The rest of their meal was a blur to Hinata and after he paid for the food he saw that it was getting late so he offered to walk her home. She barely nodded and grabbing her hand again they made their way to the Hyuga compound.

"Um…where do you live exactly?" he asked awkwardly.

"T-this w-way…" she pointed with her free hand because the one that Naruto was holding felt numb, warm and tingly.

When they finally got to the compound he let go of her hand and they said their goodbyes.

Hinata slipped into her room glad that she avoided her father. Later that night she couldn't sleep, the events that just happened replaying in her mind. This was the best day of her life. Naruto called her pretty. No, **really** pretty. She squealed into her pillow.

"I didn't know it was possible that I could love him even more…" She quietly whispered to herself, yawning she closed her eyes ready to see him again in her dreams…


	3. A new frendship

**A/N:** I'm sorry I haven't been publishing for a long time but I had some problems with my computer and I've been away for a couple of days and on top of that I've been sick too so if I don't post for a long period of time you sorta know why :-P Here's chappie 3!

Kakashi's bell test was a disaster from the start. Team 7 met in the training ground at 7 AM. Sasuke was silent, Hinata was rested having had a pleasant dream but Naruto was as groggy as he could get, yawning and trying not to fall asleep. Finally, three hours later Kakashi showed up with a lame excuse and got yelled at by Naruto. He told them the rules of the test placing the alarm clock on one of the wooden stumps.

When the test started Sasuke and Hinata went into hiding while Naruto attacked Kakashi right away. He didn't even manage to get close to Kakashi but Kakashi managed to get close to Naruto stabbing him in the butt with his 'finger jutsu'. Naruto fell into the lake and surprised Kakashi with a swarm of clones which burst out of the water attacking Kakashi and catching him into a firm hold. Kakashi used the escape jutsu and Naruto was left empty handed once again.

Sasuke and Hinata managed to put up a good fight with Kakashi, Sasuke touched the bell but got buried up to his neck by Kakashi, but just before Hinata was able to pull Sasuke out of the ground Naruto showed up and laughed his head off at the sight of a Sasuke mushroom. Sasuke was angry but he stopped Naruto's laughing fit by telling him he touched a bell. As the two argued with each other over who will get the bell first Sasuke hn-ed and left to hide again leaving Naruto and Hinata alone in the field.

"I need to get that bell before Sasuke!" Naruto yelled angrily.

"Um…N…Naruto?" Hinata spoke up a bit concerned "I think we should work t-together to…get the bells…"

Naruto thought for a moment "Yeah! You're smart so I bet we'll get the bells first. You got a plan?"

"Yes, but let's hide first." She said in a serious tone but glad he had accepted her suggestion.

Her plan was for Naruto to distract Kakashi with his clones while she snuck up to him to shut off his chakra, with him not being able to move it should be easy to take the bells. The plan was working as she managed to get close to her sensei while he was trying to get rid of two Narutos who were latched on to his legs, but just before she was able to touch Kakashi the alarm clock rang.

" _Oh no…"_ She froze.

"Well…" Kakashi said as the clones poofed into smoke "The test is over, Sasuke you can come out. Since Hinata managed to sneak up to me without getting noticed and Sasuke got the closest to the bells… Sasuke…you will get tied to the stomp and you won't get any food."

"What?!" Sasuke yelled in anger and disbelief as he appeared in front of them "Why me?! You said it, I got the closest to the bells!"

"Yes, you did…but what do you think this test was all about?" Kakashi asked calmly.

"Well to get the bells obviously!" Sasuke yelled. He was getting angrier by the minute.

"No." Kakashi said louder and frowned "I said that you have to get the bells, I didn't say you had to get a bell first like this is some kind of race, but you **all** needed to get both the bells using teamwork. Hinata and Naruto worked as a team to try and do so but you thought you could do anything by yourself. Those who betray their people are trash but those who betray their comrades are lower that trash."

After getting tied to the stump and denying food he was offered by Hinata and even Naruto, Sasuke couldn't believe he, the last of the Uchiha, was in this position, being feed rice by Hinata, then Kakashi showed up and angrily asked why they disobeyed him when he had told them not to feed Sasuke. The three started a speech about being a team and being one.

"That's your answer? You three are one?" Kakashi asked looking at them like he was about to suck out their souls.

The three of them gulped and nodded with a serious expression.

"You pass." Kakashi said in a happier tone giving them his one eyed smile.

"What?" They all looked at him in disbelief but Naruto was the one to vocally respond.

Another lecture about teamwork later Kakashi told them where to meet for their first mission tomorrow and disappeared into a poof of smoke again.

They untied Sasuke who quietly jumped away too humiliated to even say 'hn' and once again Hinata and Naruto were left alone.

Naruto broke the silence "Hey, Hinata? What did you mean earlier, when you said you were going to 'shut off' sensei's chakra?"

"Oh! Well…" she blushed poking her fingers together "I c-can see the chakra points with my byakugan s-so I can block off chakra, so that person will not be able to use the body part in which the chakra f-flow was affected in. I can turn it back on too…"

Blue eyes wide he looked at her "Wow! So you can see through things with it? It's like you have X-ray vision or something!" He gave her a big grin "That has to be the coolest thing ever! Can you teach it to me?" He eagerly asked.

She blushed "I am sorry Naruto but you cannot learn this. You will never be able to have byakugan if you do not have a Hyuga in your ancestry. And I do n-not think you would want to have c-creepy eyes like mine…" She looked down sadly.

"Your eyes aren't creepy, they're pretty, believe it. I've never seen eyes like yours before, you don't have pupils. I mean, if I didn't know better I'd think you're blind but it's obvious you can see just fine." He gave her a laugh. Then his expression changed from happy to curious and his face got really close to her face staring right into her eyes. She turned tomato red.

"Hey, I thought they were white but they actually look kinda purple!" He grinned.

She pulled away and shook her head hoping the heat would go away "Yes..umm…t-thank y-you Na-Naruto…"

"No problem!" he replied "Uh…anyway, what do we do now? I've got nothing to do now, you?"

"No…"

He thought for a moment "Oh, hey! Didn't you say you like cinnamon buns? How about it? My treat!" He gave her a big grin.

She blushed again and her eyes widened "Yes, but y-you do not have to pay again. I…I owe you, you paid last time."

"Nah, that's okay! You helped me pass. Let's go!"

She smiled sweetly at him and blushed even more " T-thank you…"

" _He really is the sweetest guy I have ever met…"_

They silently walked to the nearby bakery and got a box full of the sweet pastry. They searched for a quiet place so they got to a park and sat under a three, enjoying the peace and the sweet sugar glaze of the soft and warm cinnamon buns.

But, it was too quiet for Naruto so he spoke up "Hey, what do you think Sasuke's doing now? He just hn'ed away today…" he joked a little annoyed.

She giggled " I do not know but he is missing these delicious buns." She said surprised she didn't stutter.

He looked at her "Actually Hinata, he doesn't like sweets."

"No?" She looked at him surprised.

"No. Meanwhile, **I** haven't met a cake I didn't like!" He grinned widely at her making her laugh even more. He found her laugh really cute. _"I need to make her laugh more."_ He had noticed that she was always sad before, not knowing why, he decided to try to get to know her better in order to find out, because knowing her, she probably wouldn't tell him.

"Hey, you got any siblings?"

"Yes, I have a younger sister." She answered a little confused _"What…this all of a sudden…"_

"Oh, that's nice. How old is she? What's her name?"

"Um…Hanabi…she's five years y-younger t-than m-me…."

"Oh. Do you hang out with her? Doesn't she miss you when you're away?"

She lowered her head "Yes …we used to play together but f-father trains her at home so we don't have time…"

"Oh. And your mom? What's her name? What's she like?"

"Hitomi…she …she was the kindest person I have even known…"

"Huh? Was? What do you mean 'was'?"

She lowered her head even further " She d-died when I was five…" she repiled sadly

"Oh! I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have asked, but I just wanted to know what's it like to have a family…" he said in a sad tone

"Oh, Naruto… I do not think I could answer that question for you…my clan has always disliked me…m-my sister does not have time for me and my f-father is disappointed in me…so…it's like I d-do not have a family…" she felt her eyes sting, but just before the tears could start flowing she felt Naruto's hand rub her back.

"Hey…" he tried to comfort her. "You've got me, right? I'll always have time for you, and I'll never be disappointed in you, believe it." He spoke quietly and softly rubbing her back with his hand.

Her eyes were getting teary, she looked at him and gave him a weak smile. "T-thank you, Naruto…So m-much…" she sniffed.

"No problem!" He flashed his foxy grin "Now let's devour this buns, huh?" He laughed and she laughed with him.

After they finished their treat they kept talking about each other, about the things they like, hate, their favorite food, colors, drinks, places, their habits, when they get up and go to bed, then animals and flowers and his pranks. They tried to learn as much about each other as they could. Naruto was talking the most and asking all the questions but Hinata decided to gather the courage and ask **him** a question:

"S-so…how is it l-like to live by y-yourself?"

"Well…my apartment is really messy." He said straight up making a funny fake embarrassed face. She giggled.

"I'm…not used to company so I don't really clean that much, I mean I don't think I'm a slob but…I mean it can't be that filthy cuz my plants haven't died yet…they're fine, y'know…" He trailed of scratching his neck.

She laughed at him. "Well…I guess I'll have to visit you sometime…"

"Of course!" He agreed "Just give me a heads up so I could clean up before you do! Heheheh!" He laughed scratching the back of his head. "Speaking of homes, It's getting late." He said looking at the now dark sky "Want me to walk you home?"

"M-hm" she nodded smiling at him.

As they walked the sky was getting darker and the stars started to appear. Looking at the glimmering sky they made it to the front gate of the Hyuga compound…where Hinata's father was waiting. He glared at Naruto as they both walked up to him and stopped a few feet before him.

" _Who's this mean looking guy?"_ Naruto wondered. _"He's staring at me…that look…just like everyone else…"_

"You better have a good reason for skipping dinner, Hinata." Hiashi spoke.

"I…I'm s-sorry f-father…"

" _Father?!"_ Naruto's eyes widened slightly.

"I was with my t-teammates after our t-test…we got a l-little…c-carried away…"

"Teammates? Him?" Hiashi looked at Naruto.

Naruto remembered Iruka telling him about manners so he decided to be polite. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki , sir. It's my fault Hinata got home late, I'm sorry." He bowed.

Hinata looked at him in shock "No, Naruto. It is not your fault, you shouldn't take the blame." She put her hand on his shoulder.

Hiashi raised an eyebrow at her _"Her stutter…hmm..."_

"I expect you have passed the test, correct?" his glare softened.

She looked him in the eye. "Yes, father." She answered in a serious tone.

"Good, now come inside…we need to have a talk." Hiashi said walking away.

She looked at Naruto. "Thank you for walking me home, I have to go now."

"I'll see you tomorrow then, 'night." He smiled.

She smiled back and blushed. "Good night, Naruto." She walked in closing the gate behind her. After the door shut Naruto walked home _. "I hope she'll be ok…"_

On the other side of the door Hinata sighed at walked into the compound following her father to the main room. As they sat on the sofas across from each other Hiashi spoke:

"So…you have not told me who your other teammate is."

"Sasuke Uchiha." She answered right away.

"The Uchiha… **and** the Uzumaki…an interesting combination."

"Have you heard of Naruto, father?" Her lavender orbs met his.

"Indeed I have, a troublemaker. And I presume he has not given you any problems since he had escorted you back?"

"He is very nice, father."

"How do you and your team get along?"

"N-Naruto is very helpful but Sasuke is not as approachable, and he and Naruto do not get along so well…but it is only our first day…I am sure out teamwork will get better."

Hiashi was surprised at the lack of her stutter but of course he didn't show it. "And your supervisor is…?"

"Kakashi Hatake."

"Very well." He got up and started walking away. "If you have activities planned for tomorrow I suggest you get prepared for bed."

"Yes, father." She bowed and quickly walked to her room.

Hiashi stopped; he turned towards his eldest daughter. _"Naruto Uzumaki…"_ He continued walking. _"Perhaps he could be a good influence on her…"_


	4. Finally! A real mission!

Hinata woke up early that morning. Despite having had a pleasant sleep she couldn't get last night's events out of her head. After spending most of the day with her crush she came home to her father wanting to have a talk with her. Every time he had said that before that conversation was not pleasant, usually it meant he wasn't pleased with the progress of her skills. But this time he was calmer than usual and seemed pleased with her team's situation.

She sighed and rolled over tucking her arm under the pillow pulling out the silver locket she kept under her pillow. She opened it and looked at the two small pictures inside of it. The picture on the left was of her mother, the person who had always calmed her, but the picture on the right has a complete opposite effect, increasing her heartbeat and making the butterflies in her stomach go crazy. The picture was of her beloved…Naruto.

The day after Naruto had submitted his ID photo with white and red paint covering his face the Third Hokage made him take the picture again. After walking into the Hokage's office to submit **her** ID photo she noticed a few copies of Naruto's photo on his table, apparently the Hokage made copies of it in case Naruto decided to fool around again. At that very moment one of the ANBU asked the Third to step out of the office giving her a chance to take one of the copies which she ultimately decided to put in her mother's locket. It did make her heart race that she literally stole the picture but she would have passed out before gathering the courage to ask the Hokage himself for the picture. It's been weeks since that happened and the Third didn't seem upset so she guessed that he didn't even notice.

Closing the locked and putting it back under her pillow she looked towards her window and saw sunlight peeking though the heavy purple curtain. _"What time is it?"_ She sat up and looked at her clock. Realizing that she was lost in thought longer that she expected her eyes widened and she quickly got up, made her bed, got dressed in her usual attire, freshened up, packed her gear into a backpack and raced out of her compound so she wouldn't be late for her mission.

As she walked towards the meeting spot she thought she heard a very subtle crinkling noise of the pebbles on the ground, like somebody was trying to sneak up behind her, but just before she could activate her byakugan she felt a pair of warm hands gently fold over her eyes. She stopped dead in her tracks and slightly squealed in surprise.

"Guess who?" The person behind her whispered in a soft tone.

" _Oh dear…Oh my goodness…"_ She panicked on the inside. She would recognize that sweet voice anywhere.

Her cheeks tinted as her stiff body relaxed. "N-Naruto?"

He chuckled and let go of her "Yup!" He jumped in front of her. "Ichiraku's right up ahead! Breakfast?"

She paled as she realized that she completely forgot about having breakfast this morning and that she would have probably remained hungry for who knows how long if it hadn't been for Naruto which made her cheeks tint again.

"Of course." She smiled at him. He smiled back and grabbed her hand once again. "Come on! I'm starving!"

After breakfast they started walking towards the Hokage's building.

"So why do you think sensei told us to pack our gear?" Naruto asked her breaking the silence.

"Well, it's probably because our mission will take days to complete…" she responded quietly trying her best not to stutter. "And it will probably be outside the village…"she finished glancing at him.

He beamed turning his foxy grin towards her. "Really? You think we'll be going outside the village?" he spoke loudly as their eyes met.

"You seem excited about that, Naruto?"

"Of course I'm excited! I've never been outside the village before!"

"Huh? H-how come?"

"Old man Hokage told me to, so I wouldn't get in trouble. I owe him a lot so I promised I wouldn't. And I always keep my promises!"

She blushed. "W-what do y-you owe him?"

His smile faltered a little. "He took care of me when I was little…he gave me money, food…even my apartment…"

She looked at him with a worried expression. "I'm sorry, I did not mean to sadden you…I shouldn't have asked…" She looked at her feet sadly.

He patted her shoulder. "Nah! That's okay, you can ask me anything you want." He gave her a toothy grin.

She smiled back. "T-thank you…"

Before they could continue their conversation they arrived in front of the stair case of the Hokage's building. Sasuke was already there sitting on the stairs with his hands folded in front of his face.

"Good morning, Sasuke…" Hinata greeted him politely.

"Yeah…"he responded lamely getting a customary glare from Naruto.

"Well, now that we are all here we can head inside."Kakashi said appearing in a poof of smoke.

"And how come you're not late?" Naruto added raising an eyebrow.

"Because our clients cannot wait."

"Clients?" Naruto and Hinata added in union. After realizing what happened they smiled at each other.

" Can you read my mind with your byakugan too?" Naruto grinned at her.

" Or are **you** reading **mine**?" She added playfully and giggled.

" Ok, ok, enough with the flirting let's get going." Kakashi added making the two blush.

After getting in front of the Hokage's office Kakashi was about to knock when Naruto just let himself into the office greeting the people inside.

"Hey, old man! Hey, Iruka sensei! S'up?

"Naruto-" Kakashi started to scold him.

Sarutobi chuckled along with Iruka. "Hello, Naruto. I see you're very upbeat this morning."

"Yeah! Do we have an exciting mission? Are we going outside the village? Who are those clients sensei talked about?"

"Slow down, let me explain…"Sarutobi started. " I had more D-rank mission planned for you, babysitting, shopping, and the Lord's cat has escaped again… However-"

"No way! C'mon old man! No more kiddie missions!" Naruto interrupted.

"Let me finish!"Sarutobi said a little louder and cleared his throat. "However, Kakashi thinks you are capable of completing a C rank mission so I will give you one. You will be going to the Land of Waves, their people are building a bridge which is in danger of being damaged by a local gang, and since their Land does not have any ninja they asked us for protection. You will head there immediately. You should reach your destination in two days.

"Understood!" Naruto and Hinata said in union once again, their eyes met and they laughed.

" Ugh…" Sasuke said and walked out of the office. _"Those two are pathetic…"_

Kakashi and Hinata bowed and Naruto waved as they exited the office and headed towards the main gate. From there they began walking towards the Land of Waves. Naruto couldn't stand the silence so he began a conversation with his female teammate.

"Have you ever been outside the village?" he asked.

"Yes, I…went once with my m-mother to collect flowers for our g-garden."

Naruto nodded but remembered that her mom was a sensitive subject so he decided to cheer her up with his prank stories. Three prank stories later Hinata was a ball of giggling cuteness. Even Kakashi couldn't help but unnoticeably smile under his mask.

"-And then the lady beat the crap out them cuz she thought the mud was their fault! And they never bullied me again! Hahahah! I sure showed 'em!" Naruto finished his story.

" Alright, no more worthless fairytales, your screeching voice is so irritating…"Sasuke said annoyed walking even further away in front of the group.

"I'm irritating you? Good!" Naruto shouted back with a grin then turned to Hinata again. "Oh! I gotta tell you about the time when I snuck a fish into Old Man Hokage's hat! Or the time I put pepper in his pipe!"

Hinata's eyes widened. "You pranked the Hokage? Wasn't he angry afterwards?"

"Well, of course he was! Have you ever inhaled pepper?" He said loudly with a laugh.

"Oh dear…hehehehe…" she replied with her hand on her mouth.

A few more stories later the light blue sky was turning into a sunset of blazing red and orange colors.

"Alright…" Kakashi looked up at the sky " We should set up our tent and find fire wood while there's still light, we will continue walking early in the morning."

The three genin agreed. Naruto used his clones to find fire wood and to set up the tent Kakashi brought in his backpack. Sasuke used his fireball jutsu to light the fire. As they sat around the fire they ate the rice balls they brought with them, Kakashi ate them fast while hiding his face behind his Icha-Icha book.

"I'm still hungry but I don't want to eat nasty ration bars!" Naruto protested as he crossed his arms.

Sasuke sighed in annoyance " Is it possible that your stomach could be bigger than your mouth?"

"Well, of course it i- HEY!" Naruto glared at Sasuke making the connection.

Hinata stiffened a giggle then an idea came to her. "Um…if there is a water source nearby…we could catch some fish…"

"Yeah! Great idea, Hinata. You're so smart!"

"She makes up for your loss of brains." Sasuke added irritated.

Naruto growled at him but his attention went back to Hinata as she located a river a few miles away using her byakugan. As they got to the river they decided to catch some fish quickly before the sun went all the way down. Kakashi stayed to guard the camp site…and to read his dirty orange book.

"Idiot, you go in the water and throw the fish above the water level and I will pin them to the tree with my kunai." Sasuke said with a cold tone.

Naruto didn't even look at him " Hmph! You probably had maids and servants in your **Great Uchiha Clan** but I ain't one of them so you can't order me around! So shut your mouth and make yourself useful!" he said angrily while taking off his sandals and rolling up his pant legs up to his thighs making Hinata blush a bit. But what made her blush increase was Naruto taking his jacket off along with his shirt as he slowly got into the river not to scare away any fish.

"What do you think you're doing, moron?" Sasuke was really annoyed now.

"Shhh!" Naruto quickly and loudly shushed him. He leaned forward with his arms positioned just above the water closing his eyes in concentration. In one swift movement he dunked both his arms under the water pulling out a decent sized fish and throwing it at Sasuke who quickly caught it right before the fish made contact with his face.

Naruto turned to him and smirked "Start gutting it…moron." He turned back to the water placing his arms in the same position again waiting for more fish to swim by.

Hinata stood by the river like a statue watching the way Naruto's muscles moved as he wrestled with the fish. She shook her head and looked away trying not to faint, seeing his clothes on the ground she kneeled down taking his shirt, neatly folding it and putting it on a rock nearby. She took his jacket also folding it. Seeing that both her teammates were distracted she nuzzled his jacket under her nose taking a long sniff of Naruto's masculine woodsy smell. She exhaled sighing dreamily. She put the jacket on the same rock and put the shirt on top of it.

After catching enough fish for the four of them Hinata roasted them above the fire spicing them with some herbs she found in the woods.

"Wow! This is delicious, Hinata! One day, you'll make one heck of a wife!" Naruto complimented her loudly after taking a few bites of the fish.

Kakashi agreed with a nod and even Sasuke couldn't deny that the fish was pretty tasty, but of course, he didn't show it.

"Ok, after you're done with your meal, go inside the tent and sleep" Kakashi opened his book again "the earlier you go to sleep the less you will yawn in the morning."

Sasuke got up not saying a word and went inside the tent pulling out his sleeping bag and putting it in the very corner of the tent. Sliding under the cover he closed his eyes. _"Hn. I hope the idiot doesn't snore…"_

Naruto and Hinata followed. As they got to the tent Naruto lifted the flap for her. "Ladies first." He said quietly smiling at her.

She smiled back and blushed. Leaning forward she gave his cheek a gentle peck. "You're very sweet…" She whispered and slipped inside. _"Oh my goodness! I just k-kissed him! Eep!"_ She squealed on the inside as she quickly pulled out her sleeping bag, taking off her jacket, sandals and headband she got in it and pulled her cover over her head.

Naruto was still outside the tent, his hand still holding up the flap, his other hand slowly placed on his cheek. His eyes were wide and his face was red. He's never been kissed by a girl before. None of the girls ever paid attention to him. It felt… nice…

He shook his head pulling himself together and got inside the tent. He placed his jacket, sandals and headband next to Hinata's and he slowly laid down next to her in his own sleeping bag. She was sleeping soundly, wrapped in the cover, her head peeking out of it with her small fists tucked under her chin. He couldn't help but smile at the cute sight in front of him. Watching her sleeping form he yawned and closed his eyes, falling asleep in seconds.

Outside the tent Kakashi had witnessed the whole scene. As he pulled his face away from his book he saw the shy Hyuga pull a very audacious move that he thought she would never be capable of. And she also did something else nobody has ever managed to do before…

She made the loudest ninja in the village speechless.

" _Well…something tells me that I was right to put these two on a team together…"_

 _ **Flashback:**_

It was the day before the team assignments. All of the jounin and academy teachers were gathered in the Hokage's office.

"Kakashi" Sarutobi spoke up. "You will be in charge of Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki. Kurenai, you will be in charge of Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame.

"Excuse me, Lord Hokage but I don't think these two teams were well thought out."Kakashi added.

Sarutobi blew some smoke out of his pipe. "And why is that, Kakashi?"

"I suggest that we switch the two female team members."

"But Hinata's byakugan was meant for my tracking squad." Kurenai protested.

"Yes, but I think she should be on my squad…" Kakashi said earning a frown of confusion from her. "Let me explain…Hinata has great potential, her grades were one of the best ones in her class, but according to Iruka she is very timid and her confidence is very low. Placing her with Naruto will most likely help her, shall I say, get out of her shell. Plus, one more thing Iruka told me is that she has gained a liking to the boy so putting them on different teams would devastate her. Also, putting Sakura and Sasuke together will make her more interested in him that her training, and on top of that she dislikes Naruto. She is also a lot more…girly than Hinata so I think it would benefit her to have a female instructor she can talk to. Do you disagree?"

Kurenai blinked then shook her head.

"Good." Sarutobi agreed. "I haven't thought of evaluating the mental states of the genin until now so I reassign Hinata to team 7 and Sakura to team 8. Any objections?" No one said a word. "Then it's settled. "He exhaled another puff of smoke . _"Kakashi, I sure hope you are right about this…"_

 _ **End of flashback:**_

" _A good decision indeed…"_ Kakashi thought as his eye traveled back to the book. "Now, where was I?... Oh well, since I cannot remember I guess I'll just start over…"


	5. In the Land of Waves

_He placed his jacket, sandals and headband next to Hinata's and he slowly laid down next to her in his own sleeping bag. She was sleeping soundly, wrapped in the cover, her head peeking out of it with her small fists tucked under her chin. He couldn't help but smile at the cute sight in front of him. Watching her sleeping form he yawned and closed his eyes, falling asleep in seconds._

But little did he know that she actually wasn't asleep.

The reason why she was in such a hurry to get in her sleeping bag was because an immense amount of heat was rushing to her face, her hands were shaking, her lips were trembling and darkness was starting to fall over her eyes. In other words…she was about to faint.

Of course she always wanted for her crush to notice her and praise her, but this was more than her fluttering heart could take. First she had seen him shirtless, then he told her she would make a great wife, which a small part of her mind translated as 'his wife', and then…she kissed him! She ACTUALLY **KISSED HIM!** She never thought he would be such a gentleman but what on earth made her forget about the simple 'thank you' that she usually goes for when he's nice to her. What made her kiss him on the cheek? What made her… not kiss him on the lips? That's what she had been longing for, after all… but if she had she probably wouldn't have even made it to her sleeping bag.

As she started gaining consciousness the moon was basking the thin material of the tent in its' iridescent glow. Her eyes fluttered open, her long dark lashes brushing against her thin eyebrows, and then they widened because the moon helped her see the person who was lightly snoring next to her. As her eyes adjusted to the light her cheeks flushed at the sight of Naruto's face inches away from hers. He had probably moved closer to her during the night. He was laying on his stomach, both of his arms under the pillow, his cover was over his one leg while the other leg was stretched over the side of Hinata's sleeping bag. She smiled at the sight. Naruto was such a messy sleeper.

The entire time she was watching him she hadn't moved a muscle afraid that if she made any kind of noise she would wake him up, but she couldn't resist the urge to touch him, he looks so cute when he sleeps. As hyper as he is it was strange seeing him look so calm.

She slowly pulled her arm out of her cover, her shaky hand reached over and she brushed her fingers over his whiskers. She was surprised that she didn't feel any indentations or bumps, the marks were just there, perfectly smooth. She was mesmerized by the warmth of his skin until… he slightly shifted terrifying her as she pulled her hand away in such speed that it actually hurt her when she slapped her hand over her mouth stopping a squeal from leaving her throat.

Naruto pulled his arm from under the pillow and scratched his cheek, letting out a small yawn he stretched his arm above his head and continued snoring.

Hinata quickly but quietly pulled the cover over her head and sighed deeply trying to calm down her racing heartbeat. Her head peeked out of the cover…he was still asleep…she sighed in relief.

" _I better get some sleep too…"_

She shifted trying to get comfortable but she kicked Naruto's leg in the process. She froze and her face paled. Naruto groaned and pulled his pillow from under his head and clutched It with his arms. Not wanting that to happen yet again Hinata moved slightly away from him and curled into a little ball. It was a couple minutes before her eyelids started to feel heavy and sleep finally took her.

* * *

Hours later the moon was replaced with the morning sun. Hinata's eyes slowly opened. She lifted her head and saw Sasuke outside the open tent putting his sleeping bag back into his backpack. She got up as she saw that it was time to get going, her eyes searched for her jacket and she found it…next to Naruto's jacket. She smiled and got dressed stealing a few glances at the snoring boy next to her who was clutching his pillow for dear life. She giggled at the sight.

"Ah, I am guessing that you slept well?" Kakashi said peeking into the tent. She nodded. "Good, wake up Naruto so we don't pack him up with the tent, will you?" She smiled and nodded again as Kakashi walked away. Then her smile was replaced with a blush as she realized that **she** has to wake up her crush. She looked at him.

" _Oh dear…how do I do this?"_ She bit her lip as her shaky hands were slowly placed on his shoulder. She jostled him a bit.

"N-Naruto, wake up."

Nothing.

"Naruto, please wake up." She said a little bit louder shaking him a little harder. He groaned.

She sighed. "Oh, Naruto…ok…W-wake up!"She said even louder. His eyes snapped open.

" What?" He said with a rusty voice looking at her.

"W-we need to g-get going."

"Oh!" He looked around. "You guys are already up?"

She giggled "You are a heavy sleeper, Naruto."

"Come on! We don't have time to waist."Sasuke shouted.

"Alright, Mr. Bossy Pants, we're coming!" Naruto yelled back annoyed.

After they packed up they had the leftover fish for a quick breakfast, which thanks to Hinata was still good, they continued their journey to the Land of Waves. A few more prank stories and arguments later they finally made it to a small town surrounded with water. In the distance there was an enormous unfinished bridge with workers and cement blocks all over it. After getting in front of the bridge and introducing themselves an old man with gray hair, glasses and a towel draped around his shoulders walked up to them introducing himself as Tazuna, the bridge builder who called them for help and instead of being polite towards his protectors he insulted them for being kids which didn't sit well with Naruto.

* * *

After a thorough explanation of their mission the four of them divided and when to scout the surroundings. As Naruto walked in the area next to the bridge he saw a boy with a white hat sitting at the edge of the bridge.

"Hey!" He called out to the boy approaching him "You shouldn't be sitting so close to the edge, it's dangerous."

The boy looked at him and looked away again. "What do **you** know about danger?" The boy said in a lackluster tone.

"Oh I know a lot about danger." Naruto replied. "I've been in dangerous situations my whole life."

The boy looked at him again. "Who are you? Where did you come from? You don't belong here."

Naruto kneeled next to him. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki, the greatest ninja from the Leaf Village. I was hired to protect the bridge."

"You're the one grandpa hired?! You're a kid! You should go back where you came from! You don't stand a chance against those guys, you will die just like any other person who gets in their way!" The boy got up and yelled at Naruto then he ran away as tears welled up in his eyes.

"Geez, what the heck is his deal?" Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"That's Inari, my grandson." Tazuna said approaching him with a half empty bottle of sake. "Gato, the guy whose thugs mess with the bridge was the one responsible for the death of his father. He was the hero of this Land. Inari never got over it." He explained with sadness in his voice before he tilted the bottle and chugged the rest of the sake.

"Oh…" Naruto looked at the ground. "Good thing I didn't yell back."

Naruto left and began scouting the wooded area around the bridge spotting a girl with long black hair in a pink kimono sitting in the clearing.

"Hey, what are you doing here, lady? This area is not safe." He called out to her.

She looked at him and replied. "I'm collecting herbs to make medicine?"

"Herbs, huh?" He sat next to her crossing his legs picking one of the little plants and twisting it between his fingers.

"So what are you doing here?" She asked. "I saw you here a while ago, trying to run up a tree."

"Oh, that? I was training chakra control with my team, you know so I can get stronger!" He grinned at her.

"Once a person has something precious to protect that's when they get strong, really strong…" She got up walking away. "I have to go, we'll meet again…oh, by the way…"

"…I'm a boy."

Naruto squeaked. His jaw dropped along with the plant he had in his hand and his face paled. _"There's no way! He's prettier than Sakura!"_

A drop of sweat traveled down his whiskers. "I better get back to the bridge…"

As the night approached team 7 was hiding in different locations around the bridge with communication devices. Their guards were up because Tazuna said that most attacks happen during the night but if people were put on the lookout they would rather run away than stop the attackers.

"Guys" Hinata's whisper ran through the hearing devices "I see a group of six approaching the bridge from Naruto's side. They are 2 miles away."

"Got it." Naruto replied.

When the thugs got to the bridge they began sticking paper bombs all over the newly finished support beam that holds the bridge. As they finished and snuck away to the next beam where the genin had moved to wait for them Kakashi quickly deactivated all of the bombs. The thugs hid behind the other beam as one of them whipped out a kunai a spun it on his finger.

"Now…" He whispered chucking evilly. "When I hit one of the paper bombs with this kunai it will explode creating a chain reaction activating the other bombs and boom!"

He peeked from the beam aiming his kunai at…nothing? "Hey! Where'd all the bombs go?"

"Oh, you mean these?" Kakashi said as he snuck behind the thugs surprising them, with handfuls of paper bombs. He crumbled them into a ball and threw them in the water. The thugs ran only to be knocked out by Sasuke, Hinata, Naruto and his clones.

Naruto crossed his arms. "Heh! Mission complete." He grinned.

Sasuke looked at Kakashi "Didn't you say that there are no ninja here? Where did they get kunai and paper bombs?" He frowned crossing his arms.

One of the thugs groaned. "Well, why don't we ask them?"Kakashi looked at the thug who was trying to get on his feet.

"Hn, looks like your punch wasn't strong enough,huh, Naruto?" Sasuke looked at the blonde.

Naruto growled then stomped over to the thug and grabbed him by the neck. "I should've just kicked you in the balls."

"P-please…" The thug stammered out.

Naruto tightened his grip. "Who gave you paper bombs?" Naruto glared at him.

"I…can't say-Ugh!" The thug groaned as Naruto pressed a kunai to his stomach.

"You like kunai, don't you?" Naruto asked in a mischievous tone.

"Ok, ok!" The thug pleaded quickly. "It was Zabuza, he gave them to us."

Kakashi's eye widened a tiny bit "Zabuza? As in Zabuza Momochi?"

"Yes, him!" Naruto released him and he fell on to the wooden board they were standing on (which the workers built around the beams in case they got damaged again).

" You know that guy?" Sasuke asked Kakashi.

" Yes, I'll tell you about him later. First, let's take care of these guys."

After some threats and punches the thugs were taken to a town further away from the Land of Waves where they were put in a prison for a while.

* * *

Later that morning team 7 was having breakfast as Tazuna's house were Naruto gave Inari a loud and rather mean lesson about courage. After Inari ran off Kakashi had explained that Zabuza was one of the legendary swordsmen of the Mist and if he heard about the defeat of his thugs, due to his strength and abilities that would be trouble. They were planning on going back to the Leaf that day since they took care of the problem but the thugs weren't as pathetic as they thought.

After blowing their way out of the prison cell with paper bombs the thugs ran back to their boss to tell him what happened even though they knew they were going to be punished. Gato was pissed after finding out about the hired ninja but discovering they were just kids he underestimated them and he sent his most powerful weapon back to the bridge:

Zabuza.

Team 7 was on their way back home getting to be one of the first people to walk on the newly finished bridge.

Naruto's blue eyes squinted. " What's with all the mist? I can't see a thing." He complained waving his hand in front of his face.

Kakashi stopped dead in his tracks. "Wait!" the genin stopped. "Hinata." Kakashi said quickly.

"Right." Hinata responded doing a few hand signs. "Byakugan!" She said loudly as veins flared out of her eyes covering her cheeks.

"Woah! What is that?!" Naruto looked at her amazed.

"Quiet." Kakashi spoke. "Don't let your guard down."

Hinata gasped. "Sensei! There is chakra flowing through the mist and it's getting thicker!"

They pulled out their kunai preparing for a fight when a couple of needles flew towards them stabbing Naruto and Sasuke in their shoulders.

After the mist subsided they got introduced to Haku as he managed to separate Sasuke and Naruto from Kakashi and Hinata. After what seemed like hours being trapped in Haku's Ice mirrors and stabbed with a hundred needles Sasuke's vision blurred and he started falling backwards. Naruto caught him before he hit the ground.

 _Don't let your dream die…_

Naruto cradled Sasuke as tears began to well up in his eyes. He gently put him on the ground as streams of red chakra flowed out of him. Surrounded by it he growled while the needles imbedded in his body popped out one by one and his wounds started to heal. His hair ruffled, his whiskers thickened, the rim of his eyes and his mouth became black. He snarled showing is growing canines and claws and glared at Haku with his now red eyes.

" **I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"** Even his voice became deeper and rustier.

Haku's eyes widened behind his mask. He had never felt such power before.

And neither did Hinata. A shiver went down her spine as she felt a surge of chakra coming from the now shattered ice mirrors. She saw Sasuke on the ground and Haku slowly getting on his feet as his broken mask slipped off of his face so the chakra must have come from Naruto, but before she could get a closer look the chakra faded away.

"That guy in the woods…that was you?" Naruto panted and moved his fist away from Haku's face.

Moments later Haku collapsed on the ground with a hole in his chest from Kakashi"s chidori.

After Zabuza had disobeyed him, Gato went looking for him only to get himself killed and thrown off of the bridge by his most powerful weapon.

Hinata kneeled over Sasuke's body and started pulling the needles out , her byakugan confirmed that he was alive but unconscious.

On the other side of the bridge all of Gato's thugs gathered hitting and stabbing Zabuza until his lifeless body fell next to Haku's.

On the opposite side of the bridge all of the people from the town tormented by Gato and his men gathered with pitchforks, sticks, knives and other weapons they could find, with Tazuna and Inari in the front.

"Heh!"One of the thugs laughed. "How do you think you could defeat us?"He mocked looking at the citizens. "You're weak and outnumbered!"

"Oh yeah?!" Naruto yelled making a hand sign and then yelled even louder. "MULTI SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!"

And with that the whole half of the bridge was covered in shadow clones, the clones grinned as they cracked their knuckles one by one.

The terrified thugs gulped loudly and began running away tripping over one another.

"WOAH!" Inari exclaimed. "That's amazing!"

He wasn't the only one impressed. _"So Iruka wasn't exaggerating after all."_ Kakashi thought.

"Naruto!" Hinata called out to him.

Naruto turned around and his eyes widened. The clones disappeared in a large cloud of smoke as Naruto started tearing up looking in Hinata's direction…where Sasuke was standing. He waved towards him.

Naruto sniffed. "He's alive… " He whispered.

After burying Zabuza and Haku team 7 made to leave, but there was one last problem was solved.

"So" Inari's mother spoke up. "Now that the bridge is finished, what are we going to name it?"

Tazuna thought for a moment. "Ah! I think I have the perfect name…"

"It's going to be called…"

"The Great Naruto Bridge!"


	6. Back in the Leaf

**A/N: IMPORTANT** So in the last chapter I wrote about the fight with Zabuza and the Land of Waves, I don't really like that event and I actually didn't even want to write about that but I like the prospect of Naruto having a bridge named after him (so that he could rub it in other people's faces later) and I wanted to include It but since I'm not the biggest fan of Zabuza I decided not to drag this event so I decided to fit it all into one chapter so I could concentrate on other and better stories in the future. Some of you thought that **this chapter was rushed** so if you want a more detailed one there are a lot of fanfictions which dragged out this event that's why I didn't want to do it myself. I want my stories to be different. And for those of you who liked it here's the next one…

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Team 7 was miles away from the bridge as they said goodbye to Inari, Tazuna and the rest of the people after completing their mission, but even after miles of walking Naruto couldn't stop thinking about what Tazuna said after they started walking away. They were further away but he could still hear it…

"The Great Naruto bridge…" He repeated, his voice barely above a whisper. "Are they really going to name it…after me?"

"Hm…I thought that was the reason why you've been so quiet." Kakashi replied. "And yes, I think they are. You are their hero after all." He gave Naruto his one eyed smile.

Naruto gave a grin and an uncharacteristic blush as he scratched the back of his head.

Sasuke's jaw clenched. What happened to the 'dead-last'?

"But I mean, that was nothing." Naruto scratched his cheek. "I only scared the bad guys away…nothing special…"He trailed off…

"Exactly." Kakashi added. "And because of you they won't cause any more trouble. Also, everyone seemed really impressed with your shadow clones."

Something in Sasuke snapped but he tried to stay calm. "Hn, that's probably because they don't have any ninja so they've never seen a jutsu like that before." He said arrogantly.

"That might be the case, but none the less it is impressive that you could master such a jutsu."

Naruto blushed even more and chuckled awkwardly making Hinata giggle. He was obviously not used to compliments.

"Then if it's so impressive why won't you teach it to me?" Sasuke asked through his clenched teeth.

"Because you don't have enough chakra. You probably won't manage to make more than two without passing out from exhaustion." Kakashi calmly explained.

Sasuke growled in rage stopping in front of his sensei. "Then how come the loserlearned it?!"

"Just because **you** labeled me as a loser doesn't mean I really am one!" Naruto yelled back then his expression became serious.

"You know what?" He stopped in front of Sasuke and his blue orbs met the onyx ones. "Back there on the bridge when I thought you were dead… I actually cried for you…and when you told me not to let my dream die… I thought that we could've been friends. But since you still don't acknowledge me until we could be friends…we'll have to stay rivals!" He grinned. "Then we'll just have to see who becomes stronger."

Sasuke agreed with a rare smirk. "You're on."

Naruto's grin became wider. "Alright!" He looked up at his sensei. "You two can talk about a new jutsu for Mr. Know it all cuz he actually **doesn't** know it all, while Hinata and I go on ahead so I can tell her about the time I covered my landlord's backyard in toilet paper!" He finished loudly hooking Hinata's arm with his and pulling her away.

"Your landlord?" She giggled. "With toilet paper? You didn't!" She put her hand over her mouth.

"Well, he's full of shit so he needs it!" Naruto replied jokingly making Hinata laugh.

"Naruto, behave." She gently scolded him. He laughed and softly nudged her shoulder.

Her arm was still wrapped around his, tightening the grip she faced him as she carefully listened to his story giggling here and there. He was waving his free hand around and making faces and noises trying to make his story as funny as possible. He's always done that, exaggerating whatever he did to make people around him laugh.

His personality is amazing. Even though he grew up surrounded by hate and sadness he became such a cheerful and hyperactive person instead of being depressed. He didn't let other people affect his goal of being happy. She didn't know how could somebody who didn't have any friends develop such a sense of humor. But she was glad, that is one of many, many reasons why she admires him so much.

"And then he went to the old man Hokage and complained about the toilet paper but because he couldn't prove that it was me old man dismissed it! Haha!" He laughed as he finished his story.

Hinata laughed with him. "It is quite impressive how you always get away with mischief like that." She commented.

"I know, right?" He faced her. "And guess what? That wasn't the only reason why I got away with it. Old man thought it was funny! And…he thought my landlord deserved it cuz he tried to kick me out once, after I threw water balloons at his dog cuz it was barking all damn night and I couldn't freakin' sleep!" He gave her a fake angry pout and she laughed again.

And then she blushed. His pout was so cute. Everything about him was so…

Kakashi's voice interrupted her thoughts. "I think we should make camp."

Naruto looked towards the sky which was now covered with shades of red and purple.

"Already?" He said confused, releasing Hinata's arm to her dismay and scratching his head. "Man, time flies, right Hinata?" he smiled at her. She nodded surprised as well.

"Ok, Sasuke can put up the tent, Hinata and I will go catch some fish."He declared. Hinata located a river nearby and they started walking towards it.

Sasuke was irritated. "Hey, you can't just-"

"What-eh-huh? Can't hear ya!" Naruto interrupted loudly pulling a laughing Hinata along.

"Leave him alone…"Kakashi added calmly looking at Sasuke. "You don't want to gut the fish again, do you?"

"Hn." Sasuke turned away and began to work on the tent.

When the two got to the river Naruto caught the fish using the same approach like last time, including getting half naked to Hinata's pleasure. But this time there were no big rocks to hide behind so she nuzzled his jacket over her nose hiding her tomato red face from him, he just doesn't realize the effect that has on her. After they got back with the fish the fire was already lit and the tent was in place. An amazingly tasty meal later the genin were in their sleeping bags in the tent. Sasuke was in the corner of the tent again while Hinata and Naruto were next to each other. Hinata was on her side facing him while he was on his back, his arms crossed behind his head.

"Ah…" He sighed. "I can't wait to get back to the village."

"Shut it, I'm trying to fall asleep before you start to snore…" Sasuke interrupted annoyed.

Naruto grinned mischievously then he let out an exaggerated and really loud snore. Hinata burst out laughing covering her head with her cover trying not to make too much noise.

He looked at her chuckling. "Shhh…he's trying to get his beauty sleep…" He whispered but loud enough to get on his rivals' nerves.

She giggled. "You're so silly."

"You know you like it." He teased her.

She blushed. _"I do…"_ She thought. _"I really, really do…"_

After the laughter died down the three of them were soundly asleep while Kakashi was outside next to the fire going through a page of his little orange book with a perverted giggle.

* * *

The next morning team 7 were packed and on their way. They were getting close to the village so they decided not to bother to catch breakfast. Naruto was getting excited to be back and to finally have some ramen so he was strangely quiet. Hinata was stealing glances at his funny thinking face and she was quiet as well deciding not to disrupt his thoughts.

Meanwhile, Sasuke's eyes were focused on his female teammate. _"What on Earth does she see in him?"_

She was the first girl who wasn't trying to ask him out every time her mouth opened, she wasn't drooling over him, she wasn't trying to flirt with him…heck, she didn't even pay any attention to him. And even thought he wanted his fan girls to leave him alone for years…out of all the people she could have gone for… why the loser? The fact that any other girl would die to be this close to the Uchiha genius and Hinata couldn't care less…he found it kind of offensive.

But before he could get angrier and before Naruto started to drool over his ramen musings, Kakashi spoke pulling them out of their thoughts.

"I'll report to the Hokage, you three get your pay and then you're dismissed until next week. This mission was enough excitement for now so I'm giving you a few days off."

Naruto raised a brow then he looked up ahead seeing the Leaf's main gate.

"Alright! Finally!" He cheered throwing his fists in the air. "Last one there's a rotten egg!" He yelled out speeding off towards the gate.

"Hn." Sasuke speed off right after him.

"W-wait for me!" Hinata squealed as she tried to catch up.

"Oh well…" Kakashi quickly joined them.

Izumo and Kotetsu were at the gate as usual when they saw an orange blur approaching followed by three more blurs.

Naruto stopped in front of the gate. "I'm-"

"First." Sasuke interrupted standing next to him with his hands in his pockets.

"What? No way!" Naruto objected.

Hinata landed next to him catching her breath.

"Hah! It looks like sensei's the rotten egg!" He laughed.

"Did somebody say my name?" Kakashi replied from behind the gate beam lowering the book that was in front of his face surprising the genin.

"Huh? How'd you get here so fast?" Naruto asked dumbfounded.

"How'd you not?" Kakashi replied calmly.

Naruto opened his mouth then closed it again. "Hmph!" He pouted and turned his head away making Hinata smile. Sasuke didn't say a word, his expression was hidden behind his high collar.

"Alright then, let's go report to the Hokage." Kakashi spoke putting away his book.

* * *

After a long report the genin were given their pay and dismissed. Kakashi stayed behind.

"Is there something else, Kakashi? Hiruzen asked.

"Yes, there is. I had left something out." Kakashi answered seriously. "I believe Naruto's seal has weakened."

The Hokage's eyes widened. "And how did you come to that conclusion?" He asked a bit louder.

"While he was fighting Haku some of the fox's chakra leaked out, it took over Naruto's body…I could feel it." Kakashi explained.

"And did something happen prior to that? Something that would cause such a reaction?"

"Well, I believe Naruto thought Sasuke had died."

Hiruzen sighed in relief. "There is nothing to worry about, the seal hasn't weakened."

"Pardon?" Kakashi was a bit confused.

Hiruzen smiled. "You see, the only thing that could cause the Fox's chakra to envelope his body is a highly emotional event, so that even that little drop of power can relief the jailors anger. Naruto will be ok."

"Thank you, sir." Kakashi bowed.

"Is there something else you left out?"

"No, sir." Kakashi answered.

"Then, if that's all you are free to go."

* * *

After the genin were dismissed they were walking thought the hallway when Naruto spoke.

"Hey, I'm craving ramen so much right now! Wanna come Hinata?" He looked at her eagerly.

She smiled. "Sure. Sasuke, would you like to come as well?"

"Yeah, whatever…" Sasuke answered lamely.

"Alright then, Ichiraku's it is!" Naruto pumped his fist in the air. "Race ya there! I'm starving!" He said loudly and ran down the hallway with Hinata and Sasuke catching up to him.

After a few minutes they finally got to Ichiraku. Naruto was about to rush in but then he remembered something. He smiled at Hinata lifting the flap and once again saying:

"Ladies first."

Hinata blushed and her heart fluttered, and then she remembered something too.

"What? You want another k-kiss?" She teased him blushing even more.

"…mayyybe…" Naruto teased back looking away.

"Ugh…" Sasuke rolled his eyes and walked in taking a seat.

Naruto looked at Sasuke's back with an annoyed expression then stuck his tongue out.

Hinata giggled walking past Naruto taking a seat next to Sasuke.

Naruto sat next to her and pouted. "You owe me a kiss…" He said quietly with a smirk.

Hinata smiled giving his whiskers a gentle kiss. "You owe me two." She smiled and blushed at the surprised expression on his face. He was glad she wasn't as timid as she used to be. All the fainting couldn't have been good for her health.

"Man, I'm rubbing off on you, aren't I?" He asked with a proud grin.

"Hopefully not too much…" Sasuke added.

Before Naruto fired back at his teammate Ayame and Teuchi came from the back of the shop carrying clean bowls.

"Ah! My favorite customer! Long time no see, kid." Teuchi smiled at them.

"Yeah! I missed you guys! Believe it!" Naruto replied happily.

Teuchi chuckled. "I've met the pretty one…" Teuchi looked at the blushing Hinata and then his eyes went towards Sasuke. "But you don't look familiar."

"This is Sasuke old man, my other teammate." Naruto said not so enthusiastically.

"Ah! So you're the one?" Teuchi exclaimed. "What would you like?"

"A big bowl of pork ramen!"

"I would like miso ramen, please." Hinata ordered politely…as always.

"I'll have beef." Sasuke ordered calmly.

"So…" Teuchi started. "By the dirt on your clothes and by the fact that you didn't come here for almost a week I can tell you were on a mission?"

"Yep!" Naruto replied with his mouth full. "And it wasn't a lame one this time!" He swallowed. "So there were these morons who were messing with this really huge bridge that we needed to protect, and we ended up kicking their asses! And we also made some friends! I'd like to visit them again sometime, maybe you guys can come too."

Teuchi chuckled again and ruffled Naruto's hair. "Why not, plus we need to see that 'really huge' bridge, huh?"

"Yeah, The great Naruto bridge is awesome!" Naruto's foxy grin was wider than ever.

Ayame and Teuchi were surprised. "Excuse me?" Ayame leaned closer to the blonde.

The uncharacteristic blush was back on Naruto's face. "Yeah, that's what they named it." He grinned cockily putting a hand on his chin. "It has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Teuchi smiled while Ayame and Hinata giggled. "It sure does!" Ayame agreed.

While Naruto continued chatting with the two Sasuke was slowly slurping the broth from his bowl. Naruto was 'the star' of the mission so he was surprised that he didn't mention the time when he passed out, figuring he'd love to brag about having more energy than the praised Uchiha.

As the meal was coming to an end Naruto chugged the remains of his tenth bowl.

"The rotten egg pays for all of this, right?" Sasuke looked at the blonde.

Naruto looked at his rival. "You're yolking, right?"

Hinata burst out laughing but she quickly stopped as she realized that all attention was on her.

Ayame and Teuchi looked at her in surprise before laughing themselves.

Hinata shrunk in her seat twiddling with her fingers.

Naruto did end up paying for the meal. After saying goodbye they got up, but after a few steps they stopped.

"So, uh…"Naruto awkwardly shoved his hands in his pockets. "What do we do now?"

"I'm going back to my compound to train so that I can put you in your place next time we spar." Sasuke started walking away. "Later."

He was stopped by a shout of: "Hey, Sasuke?"

Sasuke stopped turning to face the blonde.

"Maybe we could hang out sometime? You know, work on our teamwork." Naruto smiled at his rival earning a nod from him as he started walking away again.

Hinata blushed as Naruto turned towards her. "So what do **we** do now?"

Hinata's cheeks tinted but then she looked down sadly. "I'm sorry, Naruto. I would love to spend time with you but I need to report to my f-father…and I really need a shower t-too…"

"Oh…" He was disappointed. "Hey, how about this, I'll walk you home and after we both get cleaned up we can meet so we can spend the day together, ok?"

She perked up lifting her head to meet his gaze. "I would love to." She smiled.

"Sweet!" He grinned."Speaking of sweets, we can get some cinnamon buns again."

"Yes!" She agreed happily…and loudly. Naruto looked at her surprised and she quickly put her hands over her mouth.

He laughed. "You get as excited over cinnamon rolls as I get excited over ramen!"

She giggled looking away but once she turned her head back towards him his hand was stretched towards her.

"Come on, you don't want to keep your father waiting." He said with a rare gentle smile which made her melt.

"Y-yes." She stammered out taking his hand.

Once their fingers were intertwined he squeezed her hand making her whole body tingle with delight. The feeling of holding his hand was the best thing she has ever felt. The warmth from his hand spread throughout her whole body making her feel safe and happy. She wished that he would never let go but sadly he had to once they got to the Hyuga compound.

But her sadness was gone as Naruto took a step towards her. She looked in his eyes, the pools of blue were so deep, the perfect shade of blue. She froze as she felt his warm lips press softly against her cheek. Once his lips left her red cheek they were placed on her forehead as he gave her another gentle kiss. He pulled back looking at her pearly eyes that were now wide and smiled.

"You said I owe you two, right?"


	7. Here comes trouble

_She froze as she felt his warm lips press softly against her cheek. Once his lips left her red cheek they were placed on her forehead as he gave her another gentle kiss. He pulled back looking at her pearly eyes that were now wide and smiled._

" _You said I owe you two, right?"_

She was in pure bliss, her whole body shook. She was speechless. She thought that holding hands with him was magical but feeling his lips on her cheek **and** her forehead was better that anything she has ever experienced in her life. Before she could think about what to say because Naruto was looking at her concerned because she's just been standing there not saying a thing, a man's voice broke the spell she was in.

"Lady Hinata, welcome back." Hinata's caretaker walked up to them.

Hinata looked at him still flushed. "Oh, t-thank you Ko." She bowed.

Ko looked at Naruto with curiosity. Naruto met his gaze. "Um…hi, nice to meet you." He said awkwardly.

"Uzumaki, right?" Ko asked calmly.

"Hyuga, right?" Naruto responded with a slight smile.

Ko chuckled then looked at Hinata. "Lord Hiashi is expecting you."

"Yes. Right away." Hinata replied nervously then looked back at her crush. "I have to go, Naruto."

"Meet me as soon as you can next to the same tree we sat under last time, okay?" He smiled at her.

"Yes, I will see you later." Naruto winked at her making her blush return, then started to walk away.

She rushed inside the compound. As she was getting closer to her father's study the knot in her stomach became tighter, her palms started to sweat and her steps became slower. Eventually she was standing in front of the door, and just as she lifted her shaky hand to knock…

"Come in." Her father's voice could be heard from the other side of the door.

She gently slid the door open and walked inside closing the door behind her. Their pupil less silver eyes met.

"I have received the mission report from Lord Hokage…well done, Hinata."

What? Has she heard that right? Did he just praise her?

She stared at her father. Her parted lips quivering, her eyes wide, her hands were clutching the hem of her jacket. That expression was so unladylike, especially for a Hyuga. But her father didn't respond to it. But he did respond to the state of her appearance.

"Your outfit is rather filthy…I suggest you change. Dismissed."

"Y-yes."

She bowed and left the study, and the further away she got from it the faster she walked. She rushed to her room and quickly got clean clothes. Black pants similar to the ones she was currently wearing, a lilac shirt and a gray and yellow jacket she used to wear before she graduated the academy. After a quick but thorough bath in the Hyuga hot springs she was sure she was clean enough for her crush. She rushed back to her room and brushed her freshly dried hair. She got up and walked to the door, putting her hand on the knob she stopped. She turned towards her vanity and bit her lip in thought. She walked towards it and opened one of the drawers, pulling out a bottle of her favorite lavender perfume. She sprinkled a little bit of it on her, put it back in the drawer and headed out the door.

* * *

Meanwile, on the other side of the village Naruto was in his bathroom, drying himself from his shower, looking in the mirror. Why did he suddenly get an urge to brush his hair? He never does that anyways, why now? He was just going to meet Hinata, his teammate…and the first girl who kissed him…and the first girl who was nice to him…and the first girl who wanted to…spend time…with him…

…oh boy…

"Why do I feel so…funny?" He asked his reflection. "Maybe I should brush my hair just a little…" The conversation with his reflection continued. "Would she be surprised if I didn't wear orange for once?" He stopped talking to himself and thought for a bit. "Yeah." He grinned.

He went to his bedroom and rummaged through his closet. "AH-HA!" He grinned pulling out a light blue shirt with a red swirl on the front. He paired it with black shorts. He stuffed Gama-chan (His frog shaped wallet) in his pocket along with his key after he locked the door then he bounced off towards the Konoha park.

* * *

In the Konoha park, Hinata was sitting under their tree fidgeting with her fingers thinking about her eventful day. Her father finally acknowledged her! On top of that…the wonderful kisses…

She closed her eyes and leaned back on the tree.

"Naruto…" She whispered dreamily and blushed. She squealed slightly as she pinched her forearm. Was this really happening? He ignored her for years at the academy even though that was partially her fault for not having enough courage to talk to him, but now she could feel a bit of his confidence inside her own soul. She had almost stopped stuttering not even realizing it and she hasn't fainted ever since she kissed him that night in front of the tent. When she was with him she would forget about everything else and focus purely on him. His voice, his laugh, his smile, his touch, his warmth, his eyes…

And just as she thought her day couldn't get any better she was about to spend the whole day with him again. As soon as he shows up her problems will be forgotten. Her clan, her father-

…father…uh-oh… Her father wouldn't approve of Naruto, would he?

As a member of the main branch of the Hyuga clan she was supposed to marry a successful, noble man. And yet, the wallflower has fallen for a bad boy. Naruto doesn't fit her family's standards at all…But that's exactly what she likes about him. She didn't want a rich, emotionless husband, she wants to be loved. And when Naruto said he would always be there for her she knew he meant it, so if she wants to always be there for **him** she needs to stop acting like a timed bomb around him, ready to explode as soon as he got near her. She needs him…and he needs her too. He didn't deserve to be lonely. Thankfully, now that he has her, sensei and even Sasuke he won't be lonely ever again.

She inhaled the fresh air and opened her eyes again only to see someone approaching her in the distance. She narrowed her eyes to see who it is and blinked rapidly as she recognized the figure. It was Naruto.

The closer he got the wider her eyes became. His wild spikes were slightly tamer and there was no trace of orange on his clothes. She had never seen him like that before.

And he had never seen **her** like this before. She wasn't wearing her baggy jacket but a slightly more fitted one making her figure more apparent and making the blonde blush.

Once he got to her he smiled and stretched out his hand. She smiled back and took it and he pulled her up on her feet.

"Let's go get some cinnamon buns and we can come back here, ok?" He suggested.

She nodded in agreement.

After walking to a nearby bakery, purchasing their treats they walked back to the tree and finished their buns with a light conversation admiring their peaceful surroundings. It was very convenient that there weren't many people in the park when they decide to hang out there. Hinata was glad about that because she needed to be alone with him in order to answer a question that has been on her mind ever since they finished their mission in the Land of Waves. She couldn't wait any longer, there's no way to tell if she will be able to be alone with him again anytime soon so she didn't want to waste her chance. She gulped clutching the hem of her jacket.

"Na…Naruto?" She stammered out quietly.

"Yeah?" He looked at her with a slight smile.

She got even more nervous "W-when y-you were f-fighting Haku…a red chakra came out of you…"

His heart skipped beat and he gulped, mortified.

She saw the terrified expression on his face but decided to continue. "That c-chakra…it was incredibly s-strong…so strong that it was visible to the human eye…"

His hands started to sweat and a chill ran down his spine…here it comes…the question he did not know how to answer…

"What was that, Naruto?" She faced his horrified expression.

"I…umm…It's…I…" His mouth opened and closed a few times.

She shifted sitting in front of him, putting her hands on her lap. "Please, Naruto. You told me I could ask you anything…please answer…" She begged. "That chakra was horrible…and if…if it's h-hurting you…" She trailed of as a few tears ran down her cheeks.

She felt Naruto quickly place his hands over hers, looking up their eyes met.

"It's not hurting me…it's nothing, you don't have to worry about it." He answered in a shaky voice.

"P-please do not lie to me… I can see it in your eyes…you were scared just now…please…" Even more tears came.

He sighed closing his eyes and looking away from her. "Ok…tell me…what do you know about the Nine-tailed fox?"

She blinked way the tears confused. " I do not…what does that have to do with…"

"Please answer." He interrupted in a serious tone.

"It was k-killed 13 years ago, that's all I know…"

"Do you know when?" He gripped her hands a bit tighter as his started to shake.

"It was…on y-your b-birthday…" She stammered out almost inaudibly.

His eyes went wide. "How do you know that?" He asked slowly.

"Because…it is **your** birthday, after all…" She blushed, and her blush was mirrored on Naruto's cheeks too.

He almost smiled but the knot in his stomach tightened as he decided to continue.

"It was a lie, Hinata…"

"W-what was?" She felt his hands shaking.

"The fox wasn't killed…it was too strong…so it had to be sealed …" His head was dropping lower with each sentence.

"…In a new born…"

"Oh, G-God…" She whispered as all the pieces came together. That's why the villagers dislike him…that…is why…

"Now, before you run off in fear I gotta tell you something…this is an S-ranked secret so you can't tell anyone…so please don't… I don't want anything to happen to you…" He let go of her hands and turned away sadly.

He closed his eyes and just as tears started to sting he felt her fingers trace over his whiskers.

"That does explain these though." Hinata said softly.

He opened his eyes and slowly looked at her. She put her hands on top of his.

"I do not hate you, Naruto…and I never will…you are so sweet and kind…I know you would never hurt me… I know you would never hurt anyone…the villagers do not know you but I do. You are an amazing person, you're generous and cheerful. You never give up and you always keep your promises. No matter how hard you fail you always get up again…that is what I see when I look at you…I do not see the fox. I do not see claws or a tail, let alone nine of them! I do not care what anyone else thinks, I will always be your friend."

A tear has escaped from Naruto's eye and was quickly whipped away by his hand. He smiled and looked at her.

"Thanks, Hinata…that means so much to me!" He enveloped her in a hug. "You're the best!"

"No need to thank me, Naruto…" She whispered softly, her voice a little muffled as her mouth was pressed against his shoulder.

He slowly broke the hug and they grinned at each other.

"So…what do we do now?" He scratched his neck.

" How about…we just take a walk?" She suggested.

"Sure." He got up and pulled her up on her feet.

* * *

As they were quietly walking Hinata decided to break the silence. "Um…Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"H-Have you always known about the f-fox?" She asked a little scared hoping that she didn't offend him in some way.

"Actually…no." She looked at him. " I found out on the day I graduated."

"Oh." She exclaimed. "How? I-I mean…h-how did you graduate? Y-you had f-failed the t-test s-so…I mean I'm really, really glad you passed! It's just that…" She trailed off fidgeting with her fingers hoping that he didn't get her wrong.

"Well…" He started. "After I failed Mizuki came up to me…"

"Mizuki-sensei?" She asked surprised.

"I don't think you should call him that." She gave him a confused look. "let me finish." He smiled at her and continued. "He came up to me and told me that there is a secret way to graduate. He told me to steal this scroll and learn a jutsu from it then show it to Iruka-sensei and he would let me pass. But it turned out that it was a sacred scroll with forbidden techniques and the reason he wanted me to steal it is because he wanted the power for himself. "

She was shocked. Her own sensei?

"But he thought that I was so stupid that I wouldn't be able to learn a jutsu from it, but I did! Believe it! And then Iruka-sensei found me. It's weird cuz he was the only one who managed to find me when the jonin chased me after my pranks. But when he did Mizuki showed up and attacked him. And then he told me about the fox and that Iruka-sensei hated me, just like everyone else…" His voice became sad but was quickly replaced with a foxy grin. "But then Iruka-sensei said some nice things about me and that he cared about me so I ended up kicking Mizuki's butt with my clone jutsu!" He pumped his fist in the air as he finished his story.

"Wow!" she exclaimed with admiration and surprise. "But wait…your multi shadow clone jutsu was the forbidden jutsu from the scroll?"

"Yep! That's why no one else knows it!" He flexed his arm proudly.

"That's very cool, Naruto." She said softly.

Naruto blushed and scratched the back of his head with an awkward chuckle making her giggle.

But their moment was interrupted as they heard an argument in the close distance. Looking up they saw team 8: Sakura, Shino and Kiba. Sakura and Kiba were yelling at each other while Shino just shook his head in annoyance.

"I mean, you're a mutt so chasing a cat shouldn't have been so hard for you!" She yelled.

"Then if you're so much better why didn't you catch it?!"Kiba yelled back. Akamaru barked in agreement.

Their argument continued until they crossed paths with Hinata and Naruto. The two noticed they had some scratches on their arms and faces.

Kiba and Sakura barely recognized Naruto without his orange jumpsuit.

"Uh…hey guys what's go-"

"No, I will not go on a date with you!" Sakura yelled out rudely interrupting Naruto.

"That's not what I…" He waved his hands in front of him.

"Just leave her alone, dude…she's in a bad mood." Kiba shook his head while Akamaru whined.

"But I…never mind…" Naruto sighed. " So what happened to you guys?" He pointed at the scratch on Kiba's nose.

"It's the Fire Lord's cat…that thing is impossible. I mean, we did catch it but damn…"

"Tell me about it…" Naruto added. " It took us 3 hours to catch her, but you guys look worse than we did."

"Then if you showed a better ability of capturing Tora I suggest you take the task next time." Shino joined the conversation.

"Nope, not doing it again…not any time soon anyway, we have a couple days off." Naruto explained. Hinata nodded in agreement.

"How'd you get days off?" Kiba wondered.

"Well, we just came back from a C-rank mission." Naruto scratched his cheek.

"How did you get a C-rank so soon? It must be because Sasuke is on your team!" Sakura crossed her arms. " How did the idiot get a C-rank mission before us?" She turned to Shino but then turned to Hinata as she spoke.

"Because he's not an idiot." That was a surprisingly clear sentence for the usually tongue-tied kunoichi.

Sakura looked at her surprised. "Whatever." She flipped her hair.

Naruto was fed up with her rudeness. He was used to her being rude to him but he wouldn't let her be rude to his teammate.

"No wonder Sasuke doesn't like you…let's go Hinata." He said calmly grabbing Hinata's arm and dragging her away.

"See you guys later." He added before walking away.

Those words hit Sakura like a thousand bricks. She froze as she repeated them in her head. Naruto was always nice to her, she didn't think that he would ever say something like that.

"That's what you get for yelling at him for no reason. " Kiba started walking.

Shino followed. "I think we have wasted enough time. We are required to report to Kurenai-sensei for training."

Sakura followed, her head facing the ground and her hands clutching her dress. "R-right…" Her throat suddenly felt very dry.

* * *

Hinata and Naruto weren't in the park anymore. They were walking down the somewhat quiet street. He walked silently with his hands in his pockets.

"Na…Naruto?" Hinata whispered in concern. "Are you ok?"

"You're wrong, Hinata…"

"Huh?" She was very confused. "About what?"

" I **am** an idiot…I can't believe I liked her…"

"You are so silly…and so is she…she just needs to get to know you."

"Like that's ever gonna freakin' happen…"

But as she was about to put her hand on his shoulder and comfort him…there was an explosion on the other side of the village. They simultaneously looked in the direction of the explosion to see a large cloud of black and gray smoke rise into the sky.

"What the heck was that?!" Naruto shouted looking at the smoke.

"I-I will check. Byakugan!" Her eyes widened and her mouth opened as she pinpointed the source of the explosion. She let out a small scream. "Oh No!" Her byakugan deactivated as she started to shake.

Naruto put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her in concern. "What?! What is it?!"

"T-The e-explosion…"

…came f-from the H-Hyuga Compound…"


	8. Ashes and emotions

… _there was an explosion on the other side of the village. They simultaneously looked in the direction of the explosion to see a large cloud of black and gray smoke rise into the sky._

" _What the heck was that?!" Naruto shouted looking at the smoke._

" _I-I will check. Byakugan!" Her eyes widened and her mouth opened as she pinpointed the source of the explosion. She let out a small scream. "Oh No!" Her byakugan deactivated as she started to shake._

 _Naruto put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her in concern. "What?! What is it?!"_

" _T-The e-explosion…"_

… _came f-from the H-Hyuga Compound…"_

" WHAT?!" He screamed. "Come on, we gotta check it out!"

He grabbed her hand and they ran in the direction of the explosion. The closer they got the more the cloud disappeared as some jonin and ANBU were putting out the fire with water jutsu. As the cloud disappeared completely the damage became apparent. Half the compound was in pieces, completely burned and charred from the fire. The roof was now a pile of burnt wood and roof tiles, the walls were mountains of rocks and all the stuff inside the compound: the furniture, the weapons, the windows were in pieces scattered all over the place.

Hinata's tear filled eyes were drawn towards what used to be her room. She watched in disbelief as the ash flaked from the remains of her bedside table.

"Lady Hinata!" She turned to face Ko who ran in her direction stopping in front of her.

"Ko! What happened?!" She cried out.

"It appears that an exploding device was somehow placed in the compound. We're still investigating…" Ko answered in an upset tone.

"H-Hanabi, f-father, everyone…are…" She stammered out.

"Do not worry." Ko put a hand on her shoulder. "Everyone is safe, there were no casualties."

She sighed in relief and wiped her tears.

"Thank goodness…" Naruto whispered also relieved. "What now?"

Hinata looked in the direction of the remains of her bed and gasped suddenly remembering something. Running into the ashes and jumping over what's left of her window frame. She frantically started to dig under the chunks of the wall.

"Lady Hinata! What are you doing? That might not be safe!" Ko warned.

She didn't listen, she just kept rummaging through the pieces of her mattress. A tear escaped her eye and she sighed in relief once more as she found what she was looking for. Rubbing the dirt off of her mother's locket which had thankfully survived the blast, she put it in her pocket and wiped the tear away with her elbow since her hands were now black from the charred wood.

Ko ran up to her giving her a handkerchief to wipe her hands. He was quickly joined by Naruto who slowly started walking though the burned, wet mess. He looked at his teammate who was sadly looking around the clustered bits of furniture.

She walked up to what used to be her closet trying to pull open the crocked door only to have it break off and almost fall on top of her. Naruto ran up to her and quickly grabbed the door placing it on the ground. As Naruto saw the still nicely folded clothes inside of it he gulped as he realized where he was standing.

"This…was your room?"

"Y-yes…" she whimpered.

"Well, it looks like the closet protected your stuff, huh?"

"Yes…I'm so glad." She gave him a light smile which quickly disappeared as her gaze turned towards her charred vanity. The mirror was shattered and the pieces were everywhere mixing with the pieces of glass from her window. Then she remembered the question Naruto asked earlier…what now?

She looked at her caretaker as he walked up to her. "Lady Hinata, I will bring you a suitcase from the undamaged half of the compound, you should pack up what you can salvage. Then you will have to accommodate somewhere else while the compound is being repaired." He explained like he had read her mind. "It will take a long time, of course. But I will make sure that your room is made to look better than before."

"Thank you, Ko." Her posture relaxed.

He nodded and ran to the other side of the compound.

"Big sister!" A girls voice made her perk up a bit. As she turned around she saw her father and her sister who was running up to her. Hanabi wrapped her arms around her sister's waist nuzzling her head into her abdomen.

"Are you alright, Hanabi?"

"Yes, are you?" She looked up at her sister. Hinata nodded. "Who is he?" She whispered pointing towards Naruto. "He looks familiar." She observed.

Naruto noticed her looking at him so he walked up to the two kneeling down in front of the girl.

"Hi, I'm Naruto. You must be Hanabi, Hinata told me about you." He introduced himself calmly.

" _Naruto? Wait…"_

 **Flashback:**

Hanabi was walking through the village with her caretaker, it seemed like a peaceful day, until…

" Hey, you! Get out of here, you little pest!" A man shouted angrily.

Hanabi looked over seeing an angry man standing above a boy with blonde hair who was sitting on the ground.

"I was just…looking at the masks you have…" The boy turned his head away sadly.

The man, apparently the shop owner, looked at the masks hanging from a display hanger, angrily grabbed one and threw it at the boy hitting him on the head. "Here, take it! Now get lost!" He yelled angrily and stomped back into his shop.

The boy looked around seeing the cold stares of the people around him who were watching the whole thing without moving a finger.

"What are you staring at? Stop looking at me like that!" He cried out grabbing the mask and running away.

"Let's go." Hanabi's caretaker pulled her along and she hasn't seen the boy since.

 **End of flashback.**

Until now…

" _That was him!"_ She realized. _"He has grown."_ She looked into his blue eyes. "Um…why are you here?"

"Oh! I'm your sisters teammate, I was with her when this happened." Naruto smiled at her.

"Lady Hinata." Ko interrupted them. He handed the suitcase to Hinata then gently put his hand on Hanabi's shoulder. He looked at Hiashi as he spoke. "Come,Hanabi. Let us check your room for damage."

"Yes,father." And with that they walked away leaving Naruto and Hinata alone. He looked at her.

"You need help?"

"Thank you." She smiled at him before turning around and walking up to her vanity. She opened the drawers taking out the items and putting them in the suitcase. She blushed as she saw Naruto carefully pack her clothes trying to keep it nicely folded. She distracted him while she quickly shoved her undergarments in the suitcase hiding them under her beige ninja jacket, which was washed while she was at the park.

Once they got everything they could, she zipped up the suitcase. Looking around she sighed.

"I wonder where I will have to stay? Father probably won't let me leave his sight…" She lowered her head sadly.

Naruto looked at the ground, a little sad himself. She obviously didn't like her father's company that much.

Then his head snapped towards her as he got an idea.

"Hey! You could stay at my place!"

Her eyes widened and her face flushed. She slowly turned her head towards his smiling face.

"B-b-but…" She started to fidget with her fingers. "The r-repair c-could take m-months…" She stuttered.

"So? I don't mind, you're welcome to stay as long as you want! On top of that, there are no strict clan rules in my apartment so you can do whatever you like! You can sleep all you want, you can be as lazy as you want…and you can laugh till' you cry and that's a promise, believe it!" He gave her a thumbs up and a foxy grin.

She looked at him in disbelief as a tear escaped her eye. "Thank you…" she whimpered wiping her cheek.

"No problem, no need to get all emotional about it!" He chuckled.

"So…I guess you will have a r-roommate for a while…" Her voice became shaky as the word 'roommate' barely left her throat.

"Well, I think that being away from this side of the village will be a good idea for now." Ko spoke walking up behind them. Although, his tone was a bit dull.

"What do you mean, Ko?" Hinata's smile dropped.

"Lady Hinata, we have discovered the source of the explosion." His voice and his expression became serious.

The two looked at him in anticipation.

"One of the guards had been knocked unconscious by the blast. He just regained consciousness and he told us something startling… the explosive was disguised as a package that arrived earlier today…it was in your name."

"What?!" Naruto gulped.

Hinata started to shake, Could it be…?

"The guard inspected it and found nothing suspicious, he was on his way to your room to give it to you. You weren't there so he placed the package on the table across from your room. It exploded after he got far enough from it so that he wasn't severely injured." Ko continued.

"So you mean…she was the target?" Naruto choked out.

"Yes, we believe so…"

"A-a-again?" She stuttered.

Naruto looked at her in shock. "Again? What do you mean again?!"

"I'm afraid this wasn't the first time someone targeted Lady Hinata…" Ko responded with a sigh.

"But why?!"

"To steal the power of the byakugan." Ko answered. "Luckily they were unsuccessful."

Hinata's breath was caught in her throat. Was all of this because of her? They she realized something else as she found her voice again.

"S-so…if I had been in my r-room then…"

"No!" Naruto grabbed her shoulders. "Don't think like that. That didn't happen, your safe."

"Indeed." Another voice joined the discussion. They all looked up at Hinata's father and Hanabi standing next to him.

" The perpetrator apparently had no information about you as he expected you to be present when the 'package' was delivered. Ko, I require a full assessment of the damage as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir. Right away, sir." Ko bowed and left.

Hiashi looked at his eldest daughter's shivering form. She was underwhelmed by the clan so she was being targeted instead of Hanabi.

His shy, fragile daughter. The only member of the clan who didn't inherit the cruel and strict personality characteristic for the family. Hanabi was the heiress now but Hinata was precious to him, the only reminder of his late wife. She was timid, kind and soft spoken like her mother. He didn't show it, but of course he loved his daughter.

"Hanabi, the clan elders and myself will be accommodating at the undamaged part of the compound along with the guards who will continue to perform their duty." Hiashi decided.

"Father, what about sister?" Hanabi asked confused.

"She needs to keep away from the site so that she is not harmed."

"Um…sir?" Naruto faced Hiashi.

"You have a suggestion, Uzumaki?"

A drop of sweat traveled down his whiskers. " Yes, I think she'll be safe with me."

Hanabi's eyes widened. Hiashi faced Hinata. "Do you agree?"

She nodded rapidly as she tried to keep her face from heating up, but she failed.

Hanabi noticed her rosy cheeks and her mouth slightly opened as she came to a conclusion. And that time she saw her sister sneak out of the compound, deciding to follow her she caught her spying at the blonde training, with the same blush. _"Oh,big sister…"_

"Very well, you two are dismissed."

"Thank you, sir." Naruto bowed along with Hinata. He grabbed her suitcase as they made to leave.

* * *

They jumped over the roof tops to get to his apartment as quickly as possible to make sure no one saw her moving into his place as that would defeat the purpose.

He slid his key into the lock. "Please tell me I didn't forget to clean…" He unlocked the door as she giggled.

He took a quick glance inside and sighed with relief. Grabbing her suitcase he let her in. Her eyes widened and a large smile split her face as she instantly fell in love with the place.

It was small but cozy and warm.

"I'll put your suitcase in the bedroom, ok?" She nodded. As he made his way to the bedroom his chest filled with happiness after he saw the smile that appeared on her face as soon as she walked in.

Hinata looked around taking it all in. The first thing she saw was a small hallway with buckets of paint in the corner. Taking off her sandals she stepped in to a room which seemed to be the living room on the left and the kitchen on the right. To the left there was an orange couch with a matching sofa and a small wooden coffee table. The wall behind them was covered in blue wallpaper with little bowls of ramen printed all over it. It was so Naruto. On the left was a small but at the same time spacious kitchen with a table and a few chairs. The walls were white and the wooden floors were a warm brown without any rugs.

"Alright!" Naruto was next to her again. "Let me show you around. This is the kitchen, the living room…" He walked over to a door and pushed it open revealing a room with blue tiles. "The bathroom…and…" He walked over to another door and slid it open. It was a room with a bed, a wardrobe, a bedside table, a mirror and a balcony along with a window above the bed. "This is where you will be sleeping."

She looked around walking up to picture of her team Naruto kept on his bedside table. His bed…wait…

"N-Naruto, I cannot s-sleep in y-your b-bed!" She almost yelled as her brain processed what he just said.

He laughed at her. "You're the guest so you take the bed, I insist. I'll sleep on the couch. I've slept on it before, it's no big deal."

"A-are you s-sure?" She blushed.

"Yes, I'm sure. You have a lot of space in the wardrobe and the second drawer is empty so you can unpack, I'll go make us some ramen, ok?"

"Yes." Naruto was about to leave the room but she stopped him. "Naruto!" He turned to face her."Thank you…for everything."

"Of course." He replied softly leaving the room.

When the door closed she sighed as she tried to slow down her heartbeat. She could only dream about what is happening right now. She will be living with her crush for a while, that means she would be spending all day with him! She could only imagine waking up in the morning, probably before him, making breakfast, lunch and dinner for the both of them every day, and the thought of using his shower made her squeal and cover her red face with her hands.

Pulling herself together she unzipped her suitcase and started to unpack. She quickly pulled out her undergarments folded them and packed them into the large drawer. Then as she opened the closet door she blushed when she saw Naruto's clothes. She smiled as most of it was orange, blue or gray but there were some black items there as well. However, they were very messily shoved in the closet, so after she was done with her clothes she began folding his and separating the colors. She couldn't help taking a few sniffs of his black mesh shirt. Hearing footsteps on the other side of the door she froze as Naruto knocked on the door.

"The ramen's ready, you okay in there?"

"Yes! I'll be right out!" She replied closing the closet door and stepping out of the bedroom. Walking in the kitchen she saw Naruto sitting at the table motioning for her to join him. She did so with a blush. Sitting across from him, he handed her a pair of chopsticks and they began eating. Somewhere in the middle of the meal Naruto spoke up.

"So…" He swallowed. "How do you like it here? I know you're used to living in a much bigger house but…"

"No, no,no! I love it here, it's perfect." She interrupted him.

He grinned at her and chuckled pleased to hear that. "Listen, if there's anything that bothers you, tell me ok?"

"There's nothing that bothers me." She smiled sweetly.

"Hey, umm…I was thinking that we go grocery shopping tomorrow." He scratched his cheek.

"Sure…and umm…I can cook for you everyday if you want…" She pushed her fingers together with a blush.

Naruto looked at her with his eyes wide before grinning. "Hell yeah! I love your cooking!"

She giggled. "I'm glad."

After the meal was over and the table was clean Naruto remembered something.

"Oh! Come with me." He led her to the bathroom and started to dig through a cabinet. "Here." He handed her a couple of clean towels, a tooth brush and a lavender soap. "And if your feet get cold…"He handed her a pair of fluffy blue slippers. "I know they aren't the manliest slippers ever but…"He said a little embarrassed.

She giggled. "Thank you…"

"If you need anything else just search the cabinet, alright?" She nodded.

"And…I've got a clean drawer just for you. I noticed the perfumes and shampoos you packed from your vanity you can put them in here."

She blushed in surprise. He noticed?

After showing her around some more they sat on the couch and talked about what they could do tomorrow. The talk went from groceries to pranks and the room filled up with laughter. After their laughter died down Hinata let out a small yawn.

Naruto smiled. "Looks like it's time for bed, huh?"

She blushed "It's just been a l-long day…"

"Yeah…come on, you get into your pajamas while I lock the door, then we can brush our teeth together." He grinned.

Her face turned an even deeper red. "O-k-kay…"She stammered out.

Now both in their pajamas they were standing in front of the bathroom mirror brushing their teeth. Hinata didn't know what made her face flush more. The fact that they were brushing their teeth together or the fact that she was using his tooth paste since her was half charred.

Or…the blush on Naruto's face when he saw her in her pajamas. She wore a set of a dark purple silky shirt and pants. She felt embarrassed without her bra, but her shirt was baggy so she hoped he didn't notice.

After they were done he led her into the bedroom. As she sat on his bed he grabbed a pillow and a blanket out of the wardrobe and threw them on the couch where he will be sleeping before going back to the bedroom and tucking her in.

"You good?"

She nodded covering her red face with the blanked. He got up and walked to the door.

"C-could you l-leave the d-door open, p-please?"

"Sure…but you know there's no need to be scared…" He quietly comforted her.

"Yes, it's j-just that… the s-sound of y-your s-snoring is k-kind of comforting…" She buried her face in her hands.

He laughed at her. "Good night, Hinata." He whispered sweetly.

"Good night, Naruto." She replied.

He went back to the couch falling asleep in seconds. Hinata smiled hearing his light rhythmic snoring. He made her feel safer than anyone else in the world. Hoping to surprise him with breakfast tomorrow, nuzzling her face in his pillow she closed her eyes. She has never felt this comfortable in a bed before. The mattress was the perfect density, the blanket was thick and warm and every time she inhaled her nostrils filled with his masculine scent.

At that moment she forgot about the danger she was in as she fell into a deep slumber hoping that when she wakes up she will still be in his bed…


	9. A new day

**A/N:** Sorry this chapter took forever, it's exam season. :-P

The mess at the Hyuga compound was slowly getting cleaned as people were gathering the chunks and pieces of the roof, the walls and the furniture. Hiashi Hyuga, having had just finished a training session with Hanabi, was overlooking the clean up.

"Excuse me, Lord Hiashi…" A member of the clan council approached him.

"Yes?" Hiashi replied blankly.

" We had summoned a meeting the previous evening to discuss the situation and it has come to our attention that Lady Hinata is not in the premises. Why weren't we notified about that?"

"How do I know that one of you is not responsible for this?" Hiashi still didn't even look at him.

"That is absurd! Why would you come to such a conclusion?!" The man shouted angrily.

"You never hid your disappointment in my daughter. On top of that the guard who brought the explosive device inside the compound could not detect anything inside of the package because a protective seal was used to mask the content inside from the byakugan. The same seal we use for maintaining privacy in our compound. You have access to it."

"That might be true… but it is totally irrational…" The man lowered his voice.

Hiashi looked at him from the corner of his eye. "Explain."

"We all know that in order of taking the abilities of the byakugan from a Hyuga the one must be alive as the byakugan does not function anymore without chakra in the ones' body. This was an attempt to kill Lady Hinata, to add to the ridiculousness of your conclusion we already posses the byakugan…why would we want someone else's?"

Hiashi closed his eyes. "That is a valid point… unless you were stealing the byakugan for someone else."

"But if that person has an alliance with someone from the clan then they should know that the target must stay alive."

Hiashi faced the man. "You would rather kill her than let anyone get away with the byakugan."

"This discussion is a waste of time!" The man yelled in anger. "We must find Lady Hinata and bring her here were she will be guarded in the clan dojo with maximum protection."

"I already know of her whereabouts."

The man stared at Hiashi. "What? And when were you planning of telling us this?"

"I wasn't." Hiashi answered calmly.

"And why exactly?" The man was getting agitated.

"Didn't we just have a 'ridiculous' conversation about that?" Hiashi added walking away.

The man grunted and took a deep breath to calm his anger, shaking his head he walked away.

Hiashi walked over to the undamaged part of the training area and took a seat. Seconds later he was approached by Hanabi's caretaker and maid Natsu.

"Would you like some tea?" She placed the platter next to him.

"Thank you." He took a sip. "It is somewhat unusual as I'm used to Hinata making tea for me." Natsu was one of the people he trusted.

"Is it not good?" Natsu asked concerned.

"It is fine." He took another sip.

Natsu thought for a moment. "Speaking of Lady Hinata…will you allow me to ask you a question?" She asked quietly.

"Go ahead." Hiashi put the tea back on the platter.

"I've heard about who she's staying with. Do we trust the boy?"

Hiashi was quiet for a moment. "Take a seat. I will explain."

Natsu raised her brow in confusion but sat next to him.

"When Hinata was made a genin she was in her room with Hanabi, I was passing by just to hear about Hinata finding her mother's precious silver locket. I admit I stopped to listen for a moment to hear where she had placed it… I wanted to take a look at it as the locket was my gift to my late wife and I haven't seen it in a long time. I did not want to ask her to give it to me personally as I did not have a reason to take it other than to take a look at it. I thought Hinata would have found my behavior odd as I do not usually have any interest in anyone's possessions…"

Natsu listened carefully as he got to the point. "I went into her room and took it from beneath her pillow… the boy's picture was inside of it."

Natsu's eyes widened in shock and surprise. "I placed it back so I suggest you keep this between us."

"Yes." Natsu said quickly.

" I have made my daughter's life miserable in many ways, keeping her away from someone who makes her happy and someone who could possibly repair her mental state will help no one. He **is** an outcast, a jailor and most definitely not fitted for my daughter but Lord Hokage has trust in him so I have no choice but to trust him as well. Besides, no one would suspect him. "

"Yes…" Natsu agreed.

* * *

Naruto stirred in his sleep, sniffing the air his eyes snapped open at the smell of cooked food. He looked towards the kitchen only to see Hinata serving homemade ramen into a bowl making him drool.

"'Morning." He said quietly not to spook her.

Hinata looked up at his smiling face and returned the smile. "Good morning, sleepy head." She giggled.

"Did you make that?" He asked excitedly getting up and walking up to her. "That looks amazing!"

"Yes, I wanted to thank you for letting me stay s-so I decided to s-surprise you…" She pushed her fingers together.

"I told you already, no need to keep thanking me."He looked straight into her lilac orbs. "I love having you here…I've actually always wanted someone to wake up to…" He said timidly.

Her heart fluttered at his loving words.

"I'll go change and I'll be right back." He went to the bedroom to get his clothes but upon opening his closet his eyes widened when he saw his nicely folded clothes. "Did you fold my clothes?" He asked sheepishly. He got a giggle in response. He smiled and shook his head. "You know, I didn't bring you here to clean I brought you here to protect you."

"Well, if you won't clean who else will?" She giggled again.

"I'll clean! I'll do everything! You're the guest, you're not supposed to do that!" Now dressed he went back into the kitchen.

After they finished their breakfast Naruto patted his full belly. "Man, that was good! I bet you could even make vegetables taste delicious!" He grinned at her.

She giggled. "Well I guess we could add those to our grocery list then."

He blinked at her. "Fine…" He rolled his eyes playfully.

And speaking of groceries, that's where they we headed next. Getting ready and locking the apartment they made their way towards the supermarket.

* * *

But they weren't the only ones. After grabbing a basket Sakura went down the aisles looking for what her mom told her to buy. A few minutes later she heard a familiar laugh. Peeking from behind the shelf she was next to she saw Naruto and Hinata with an almost full basket. Looking at the aisle with shelves full of jars Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"I guess finding what you need among all of these jars would be quite a pickle, huh? He joked earning a cute laugh from Hinata and a smile from Sakura whom they were unaware of. She wanted to say hi but quickly changed her mind remembering their last conversation.

"Yeah, it's jarring isn't it?" He continued the joke. Hinata almost dropped the basket after her knees buckled from laughing. Naruto grabbed the basket. "I got it." He smiled at her enjoying her adorable laugh.

After they got what they needed they paid and headed back home. After sorting out the groceries Naruto sat on the couch and sighed.

"Well, this is our last day off…what do you wanna do?"

Hinata leaned against the kitchen table looking at him. "I don't know…" She replied.

Naruto looked around trying to think of something, his gaze stopped at the plants in his kitchen. Then he remembered that Hinata said she liked gardening so he got an idea.

"Well…I guess I could use some more plants to brighten up the place a bit. We could go around some flower shops?"

She smiled. "Sounds fun."

And off to the shops they went.

* * *

Meanwhile, some other ninja were on those same streets. Asuma and Kurenai were sitting in a bar they frequently visited having some sake and enjoying the peace as they both just finished training with their teams. The two liked each other's company. Asuma even restrained himself from smoking when he was around Kurenai.

"…They've been making amazing progress. Ino isn't as frustrated about not having Sasuke on her team as before and their teamwork has gotten better." Their conversation continued. Asuma took a sip of sake. "How are things with your team going?"

Kurenai sighed after a big gulp of her drink. She put the dish down and pinched the tip of her nose in frustration.

"Sakura has been…quieter lately…"

"Considering her constant yelling at Naruto, isn't that a good thing?"Asuma asked confused.

"I suppose it should be but…I think something has happened that I don't know about that put out some of the fire she had in her before. Whatever it is she won't tell me abou-" Kurenai stopped mid sentence as something caught her eye.

Asuma raised an eyebrow in confusion and looked in the direction she was looking. Walking down the street were Naruto and Hinata, both eating an ice cream and walking hand in hand.

Kurenai's breath caught in her throat. She knew about Hinata's crush on the blonde but the sight still very much surprised her. However, there was something else that caught her attention.

"Ice cream? Shouldn't they be training for a make-up exam?"

Asuma's hand froze right before the cup touched his lips. He looked at her in surprise.

"Wait, you hadn't heard? Kakashi passed them."

Her head snapped towards him. "You're kidding?!"

"No, it's true." He took the sip as his hand unfroze.

"But he's never passed a team before. Looks like there **is** something about those three."

Asuma chuckled lightly. "Could you imagine what a scandal would it be if the Uchiha genius and the Hyuga heiress hadn't passed?"

Kurenai sighed and shook her head. "I need another drink."

* * *

After finishing their ice cream the two began picking out plants. Looking at all the colors and shapes of the leaves and buds, Hinata made sure to pick a plant that didn't require too much maintenance. Naruto on the other hand was curiously looking around the plants, he actually wanted Hinata to pick out the ones **she** liked the most. He looked at her to see if she had picked anything, she bended over to smell a big, bright red flower but taking a sniff she made a face and straightened quickly. She shook her head making her indigo locks sway and then put her hand over her nose.

He laughed at her making her jump. She blushed in embarrassment and pushed her fingers together. After he stopped laughing Naruto walked over to the flower and took a curious sniff himself. Pulling away he looked at her.

"Agh! That freakin' stinks!" He laughed again.

"I know…I-it smells like…like…um…" Hinata's blush faded as she tried to recognize the peculiar smell.

Naruto thought for a moment and took another sniff. "It smells like rotten onions." He grinned at her sheepishly.

She blinked then laughed at the randomness of the comment.

"So which ones do you like?"He smiled at her.

"M-me?" She gave him a startled blush.

"Yeah, I could use some uh…'feminine touches' in my apartment." He chuckled.

After the plants found their new home Naruto and Hinata needed to find what to do next. Sitting at the kitchen table with his hand under his chin he looked at her.

"Should we go train?"

"Sure." She nodded.

Even though they went in and out of the apartment all day they got out once again and made their way towards the training ground.

"So what do you want to work on?"

"Well…maybe I could spar against some of your clones?"

"Sure! And I need you to help me with chakra control. I suck at it…"

"You are not that bad at it, Naruto…"

"Please, don't sugar coat it Hinata…remember the tree walking we did in the Land of waves?

"I do! It wasn't that bad, really…"

 **Flashback:**

"What are we doin' here Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked confused. After they made sure the thugs weren't around Kakashi took them to a woodsy area nearby.

"Now, we are going to learn about chakra control. "

"Huh? But didn't we already learn all that at the academy?" Naruto asked annoyed.

"You only learned the basic **about** chakra. You never learned how to properly control it." Kakashi explained. "Now, what is chakra exactly?" He looked at his students.

"It's the thing we use in jutsu, right?" Naruto scratched his cheek.

"Yes, but in definition?"

"M-may I, sensei?" Hinata shyly raised her hand.

Kakashi gave her his one eyed smile. "Go ahead."

"Chakra is essential to even the most basic techniques. Through various m-methods, the most common of which are hand seals, chakra can be controlled and manipulated to create an effect that would not be possible otherwise, such as exhaling fire, or c-creating illusions. Chakra is ordinarily not visible to the human eye unless it is manifested in large amounts." Hinata explained.

"Excellent." Kakashi looked at her proudly.

Naruto smiled at her. "I don't know if it's because I like your voice or what but I understood every word of that."

She looked at him and her blush increased.

"I guess she should be the one to explain things to you then." Kakashi added making her blush even more.

"So, are we doing what I think we're doing?" Sasuke asked lamely.

"If you're thinking about climbing a tree then you're right."

"Hn."

"Climbing… a tree?" Naruto was even more confused now.

"Yes… But without using your hands."

" How are we supposed to do that?"

"Like this." Kakashi made a hand sign then walked up to a tree placing his foot on it, horizontally walking up the tree.

"Woah…" Naruto watched in amazement as Kakashi walked back down. "What do I do?" He asked excitedly.

"First concentrate your chakra to the bottom of your feet then just walk up the tree."

"Heh! Piece of cake!" Naruto made a hand sign then molded chakra into his feet but after two steps up the tree he landed on his rear. " What the…Ow!"

"Hn…loser." Sasuke gave it a try himself but after five steps his feet slipped off of the tree. He landed smoothly next to Naruto who was still on his rear.

"Hmph!" Naruto crossed his arms and turned away.

"Use a kunai to mark your highest point, then try to make it above that point over and over until you get to the top."

"Easier said than done…" Naruto got up on his feet.

"Oh, really? And I thought it was a 'piece of cake'. " Sasuke mocked him.

Naruto growled at his rival and started to concentrate his chakra again. After a dozen of failed attempts Naruto was on his rear again. His highest point was a few feet higher while Sasuke had made it to almost the third of the tree.

" _Well I hope he's doing worse than…huh?"_ He looked around." Hinata?"

"Up h-here!" She cried out shyly.

Naruto and Sasuke looked above their heads to find Hinata sitting on the highest branch of the tree. She gave them a timid wave.

"Woah! Hinata you're awesome!"

Kakashi nodded proudly. _"Just as I expected. Hyugas are known to have excellent chakra control."_

"Well done, Hinata." Kakashi smiled at her under his mask. "You can rest now, but the two of you will have to keep tying until you get to the top." He said looking at Naruto and Sasuke.

She blushed and smoothly walked back down. "Y-yes."

Naruto walked over to her. "Hey, can you help me out? Please…" He whispered.

She twiddled her fingers. "Well…y-you do not need to use a lot of c-chakra, and you need to c-calm down. Being angry will not help you, it will only affect your chakra flow…try to r-relax."

"Ok. Thanks Hinata, you rock!" He grinned at her then ran back to his tree.

After Hinata's advice Naruto had almost climbed higher than Sasuke. His rival didn't like that but as he was about to approach Hinata and ask her what she told him one of the workers from the bridge ran up to them telling them that somebody spotted a few of the thugs. So Kakashi had to put their training on hold.

 **End of flashback.**

But now they could finally continue it. After getting to the training ground and sparing for an hour the two were resting on the grass next to the three wooden stumps. Naruto turned his head towards her.

"Hey, how about you help me now?"

"Ok." She got up. "And I know the perfect way, come on."

She led him to a nearby river. "This is a perfect chakra control exercise for you, my… father taught it to me. "

She made a hand sign and calmly walked over to the river. Taking a step onto the water she began walking on its' very surface like it was only ground. Naruto looked at her in amazement.

"How…you're…you can do that?! Can you teach me?" He said in a hopeful voice.

She smiled at him. "Of course. All you have to do is to concentrate your chakra to the bottom of your feet, and relax just like I told you."

"Ok!" He made a hand sigh and his eyes closed in concentration for a few seconds, when they opened he took a step on the water. He was surprised that it felt solid so he took another step, and another, and another and then he ran up to her and grabbed her around her waist, lifted her up and spun her around.

"Woohoo! I did it! Thanks a bunch, Hinata!"

He let her go and her knees buckled as her blush reached her neck making her almost loose her balance. "Y-you a-are w-welcome…" She stammered out.

* * *

After a long cheerful walk they were half way back to their apartment. After Hinata's stomach rumbled she fidgeted her fingers in embarrassment earning a laugh from her crush.

"You hungry?" He smiled pointing his thump towards Ichiraku. She nodded shyly and he grabbed her hand dragging her inside greeting a few of his favorite people.

"So you were training?" Teuchi asked giving him another bowl.

"Yep! Hinata just taught me how to walk on water!"

"That's great. She's pretty cool, isn't she?" Ayame winked at Hinata who turned tomato red. The tomato red went to beet red as she felt Naruto's fingers intertwine with hers.

"Yeah!" His grin was replaced with a soft honest smile. "Thanks for always being there for me." He said softly as he lifted her hand towards his lips kissing the back of it.

Her eyes became watery and she gave him a bright smile. "Always…"

Finishing their meal they headed back home. Brushing their teeth together again they got ready for bed.

Tucking her in he wished her good night and walked to his couch. She nuzzled her face in the pillow suppressing a squeal of happiness. This was the best day ever. Hearing him start to snore she calmed herself and quickly fell asleep… not knowing that a nightmare was about to ruin her slumber…or will it?


	10. A dream or a nightmare?

_Hinata was walking through a dark hallway. She didn't know where she was or how she got there, all she knew was that she's alone and scared._

 _As she kept walking the smell of blood was getting unbearable. Her steps quickened in hope to get away from whatever the smell was coming from but she tripped on something. She yelped in pain as she hit the cold, wet, stone floor. She tried to get up when something warm dripped on her cheek. Wiping it with her finger off of her cheek she brought her hand up to her face to see what it is…it was blood…_

 _She looked above her and screamed in terror to see Naruto's headless body hanging from the ceiling._

 _Looking towards her feet to see what had tripped her, her eyes met Naruto's as his head turned to face her._

Letting out a scream she woke up in cold sweat. Looking around she realized she was in his bed. The moonlight was peeking through the curtain. She closed her eyes to calm her heartbeat and to try to erase the horrible images from her head but that was unsuccessful. Tears welled up in her eyes and dripped down her cheeks.

Then she felt a hand soothingly rub her back. "Hey, you ok?" Naruto whispered in concern sitting on the bed next to her. Her scream woke him up instantly so he scrambled out of his blanket and rushed into the bedroom.

She opened her eyes to face him but she closed them again as she quickly wrapped her arms around his waist sobbing into his chest.

"Shhh, it's okay…it was just a dream…" He hugged her back.

A few minutes later she was limply leaning onto him with her arms still around his waist and her eyes sore from the bitter tears. That was the worst nightmare she has ever had.

As she gradually calmed down Naruto was rubbing her back and whispering the soothing 'it's okay' into her ear over and over again until she had stopped sobbing. Her tears had dried on her cheeks, his warmth filled her whole body, her breathing now steady. But she didn't want to let go.

As soon as she lets go he will go back to his couch and leave her alone, vulnerable and ready for another nightmare to take her. But before she could tighten her grip on him he whispered into her hair.

"You okay? You should go back to sleep." He gripped her shoulders and gently started pulling her away from him.

Her body started to shake again. She looked at him with a set of fresh tears in her eyes. It was dark but she could see the reflection of the moon in his eyes.

"P-please d-don't l-leave m-me…" She sobbed out.

He folded her hands in his. "Leave you? Hinata, I'm right there on the other side of the door."

"N-no!" She almost cried out. "S-stay w-with me…please…"

She looked at him in anticipation as his mouth opened and closed a few times. Her heart almost stopped as he let go of her hands and got up. But he wasn't headed towards the door. He fixed the pillow that was shifted from her moving around in her sleep and grabbed the blanket she kicked off of the bed. He motioned for her to lay back down.

Her heart fluttered and her blush became visible through the darkness of the room as she realized…they are going to sleep in the same bed.

She laid down and Naruto covered her with the blanked and laid down beside her. He smiled as she nuzzled her face into his chest. He wrapped an arm around her and slowly ran his fingers through her hair.

"Sleep…I'm right here…you're safe…" He whispered.

And she did so as the feeling of his fingers running through her indigo locks, the calming sound of his heartbeat and his warmth made her very sleepy.

But Naruto laid awake for a few more minutes basking in the feeling of a girl sleeping next to him. It made him warm on the inside. He closed his eyes as Hinata's sweet lavender scent made him fall asleep at last.

* * *

Hours later when the sunrays coated the village, a meeting was in session at the Hokage tower. Hiruzen Sarutobi was seated at his desk while all the jonin in the village stood in silence across from him. But they all knew what the purpose of the meeting was.

Hiruzen exhaled a puff of smoke before he spoke. "Seven days from now, the chunin selection exams will be held here in the Leaf Village."

"A week?" His son, Asuma spoke. "That's very short notice."

"That is enough time to prepare the participants for the exam." Hiruzen responded. "Speaking of the participants, will the jonin in charge of the rookie genin step forward."

With that Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma took a few steps towards the Hokage.

"Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai…are there any on your teams who are, in your opinion, ready for the chunin exams?"

Kakashi raised two fingers under his nose as he spoke. "I am in charge of team 7: Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga…And now I, Kakashi Hatake, recommend all three for the chunin selection exam."

Iruka gasped silently. _"What?!"_

"I lead team 8…" Kurenai spoke against her two fingers. "Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame and Sakura Haruno…And now I, Kurenai Yuhi, recommend all three."

"And I lead team 10: Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara and Ino Yamanaka… and I, Asuma Sarutobi recommend all three."

Whispers started to circle around the office before Iruka snapped. "Unbelievable…"

"What is the matter, Iruka?" Sarutobi raised his head towards him as Iruka stepped in front of the group.

"These were all my students at the academy. I know their skills and abilities. It is far too early for them to compete!"

"Like you said, they **were** your students."

Iruka's head snapped towards Kakashi. " What?!"

"They have grown since the academy and their skills have increased, they are ready." Kakashi answered calmly.

"What's the rush, Kakashi?" Guy put his hand on his chin and his other hand on his hip doing his cool guy pose. "I held my team back for a year so they can mature. Let them enjoy their youth a little longer."

"Are you sure it's not because you're afraid of my team wiping the floor with your team?" Kakashi added even calmer.

Guy scowled.

"That is enough!" Hiruzen yelled. "The matter of the rookie genin participation is final. Dismissed."

* * *

Hinata's eyes slowly opened. It was morning. The birds were chirping outside so she had made it through the night without having another nightmare. And it was all thanks to the person who protected her from the darkness and who was quietly snoring next to her with his arm around her shoulders. She smiled at him lovingly and slowly placed a gentle kiss on his nose then she slid underneath his arm stopping for a second to press her cheek against his arm and feel the warmth of his bicep. Once free from his embrace she picked up her clothes and quietly got to the bathroom before preparing to make him the best breakfast yet.

"Mmmm…this is amazing!" Naruto swallowed another big bite of Hinata's flavorful rice ball before taking a heart shaped carrot slice and popping it in his mouth. He was right, she did make vegetables delicious! And it was incredibly endearing that she took the time to cut them into hearts to make it extra special to thank him for last night. He once again insisted that she didn't need to thank him for anything.

After the meal was over they needed to get ready to meet their sensei since their days off were over. So after satisfyingly patting his belly Naruto grabbed the dishes while Hinata cleaned the table. After everything was clean they made to leave.

They knew Kakashi-sensei would be late as always so they were in no hurry to get to their usual meeting spot at the bridge. After chatting about the amazing breakfast their conversation ran out of words. Naruto broke the silence after a couple minutes.

"So…uh…what was the dream you had about?" He asked carefully not to upset her.

Her eyes widened and her expression saddened. "I d-dreamt about y-you g-getting d-decapitated…"

"Well, my head is still here so you don't have to worry about it." He chuckled.

She smiled. "Yes, it was silly of me to react to it so strongly…I'm sorry."

He sighed. "Why are you apologizing again? You didn't do anything wrong."He smiled at her.

She looked at him. "If I apologize for apologizing will you get mad at me?" She asked in a serious tone.

He stared at her for a moment before he burst out laughing. "What?! No!" He wiped a tear from his eye.

She giggled. "Sorry…Oh!" She slapped her hand over her mouth. _"Stupid!"_

He stared at her again before he let out a loud laugh and clutched his stomach. After he stopped laughing he grinned at her. "Ah! I don't remember the last time I laughed this hard. Thanks, Hinata. You're the best."

She blinked. She was funny? She blushed and looked away but as she turned her head her eye caught something strange. A part of the tall wooden fence was bulky and the wood pattern was horizontal instead of diagonal, and there were two small hands along with a stub of brown hair sticking out from the top.

She tilted her head in confusion. "Um…Naruto?" She pointed towards the odd sight.

Naruto looked at it and shook his head with a sigh. "What do you think you're doin', Konohamaru?"

Hinata blinked in surprise as a boy stepped out from behind the shroud.

"You saw through my camouflage, huh? Just what I expected from my rival."

"Sorry, but I don't have time to play with you right now, I need to meet Kakashi-sensei." Naruto responded.

"What?" Konohamaru sighed. "I guess it can't be helped. You're a ninja after all."

"That's right." Naruto adjusted his headband proudly making Hinata giggle.

Her cute giggle caught Konohamaru's attention.

"By the way boss, who is she?" Konohamaru pointed at Hinata.

"Oh! This is Hinata, she's my-"

"Girlfriend?" Konohamaru interrupted sticking out his pinky finger.

Hinata's face flushed as she tapped her fingers together. "M-me a-and N-Naruto…I…w-we… we are teammates b-but…" She couldn't get herself to say that word. Her world started to spin as Naruto cockily responded:

"You can tell she's really crazy about me, huh?" He scratched the back of his neck.

"Way to go boss! She's a babe!" He gave Naruto two thumbs up.

Hinata almost had smoke coming out of her ears. "A b-b-b-b-babe…"

"Isn't she?" Naruto grinned at his beet red teammate. "Come on, we gotta go. I'll see you later, Konohamaru!" He waved at him and grabbed Hinata's hand as they started to walk away.

Noticing Hinata's wobbly walk he turned to her. "You ok?"

She covered her face with her free hand. "N-N-Naru-to, w-why d-did y-you t-tell h-him t-that w-w-e…" She could barely speak and walk as all of her strength was focused on trying to maintain her consciousness.

"Oh, well…" Naruto scratched the back of his head as a tinge of blush appeared on his cheeks. "I've never had anyone admire me like that before, so I thought that if he thinks I have a girlfriend I'd seem even cooler, y'know…" His expression saddened a bit. "I thought that if he ever met Sasuke he won't admire **me** anymore…he'd admire Sasuke then, since all the girls are after **him** but he doesn't have a girlfriend still…and I don't want Konohamaru to go after him…so…I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable…"

"Oh! N-not at all!" Hinata waved her hand in front of her."I think…it's very nice that you have someone who sees how strong you are…" She said softly as she found her voice again.

"Yeah." Naruto squeezed her hand. "Besides you…"

HInata blushed again. "Um…should we get going?"

"Oh! Yeah, we better hurry! I won't be surprised if we're the ones who are late this time." They started walking quicker. "And we always complain about sensei being late… I wouldn't hear the end of it…" He rolled his eyes and Hinata giggled.

* * *

Finally getting to their meeting spot they were relieved that Sasuke was the only one there. "Yo Sasuke!" He yelled out to him letting go of Hinata's hand to her disappointment.

Sasuke looked at them raising an eyebrow. "What took you two so long?"

"We ran into a friend on the way here. Why? Don't tell me you lost your patience? Sensei's the one late again."

"Hn."

"I don't think I'm that late, am I? A poof of smoke drew their attention to a post above the bridge Kakashi was now standing on. "Well, I am glad you are all in a good mood because I have some great news." He jumped off of the post smoothly landing in front of them. "I nominated all three of you for the chunin exams."

"The…chunin exams?" Naruto repeated confused.

"The chunin exams are an opportunity for genin to be promoted to chunin, Naruto." Hinata explained.

"Oh! Well then I'm totally in!" Naruto held out a fist in determination.

"So, when are we supposed to show up?" Sasuke asked.

"A week from now, go to the academy building, room 301 on the third floor, and be there before three o'clock as that's when the exams will start." He then pulled three papers out of his pocket. "These are the application forms, if you want to take the exams sign these and bring them with you to the academy building. You have a week to decide so take your time, but for now I believe we've got some training to do."

* * *

After a few hours of sparring the three were resting under a three at the training ground after getting dismissed by Kakashi.

"We are so gonna ace these exams. Believe it!" Naruto grinned.

"Hn." Sasuke nodded affirmatively.

"Um…I d-do not think I am g-going to take the exams…" It was barely a whisper but the other two heard it anyway.

"What? Why not?" Naruto's head snapped towards Hinata.

"We are only rookies…I do not think I am prepared…"

"You are prepared! I'm sweating right now because you almost kicked my ass today!"

"Hinata, I think you should reconsider." Sasuke turned to her. "Your byakugan will be very useful and we need your intelligence."

"And we are team 7! We do everything together! We're one, remember?" Naruto added.

"You guys…" Hinata blushed. looking at her lap her eye caught Naruto's hand wrapping around hers.

"We need you, Hinata." He pleaded softly.

Hinata looked up, her eyes showing determination. She smiled at her two teammates. "Let's do this."

"Yeah!" Naruto grinned.

Sasuke flinched at his outburst. "You realize that we'll probably need our hearing for the exams too?"

Naruto's head tuned to Sasuke in annoyance. "Yes! I know!" He yelled even louder.

Sasuke punched him upside the head. "You're unbearable."

"And you're tired cuz'I didn't feel a thing!" Naruto grinned.

Hinata giggled at her two teammates. No matter how much the two of them argue they are never truly angry with each other. _"I think that we could really do everything as a team…"_

* * *

After finally deciding to get up they went to a dango shop as Sasuke didn't want to eat at Ichiraku again. They had a standard conversation about food before Sasuke went silent. Noticing this Hinata swallowed the last of her meal and turned to him.

"Is something wrong, Sasuke?"

"I've been thinking…we shouldn't get too excited about the exams…the title of chunin is at stake, there's no messing around. We need to be prepared and never let our guard down."

"Yeah…" Naruto swallowed. "And I bet there will be a lot of strong ninja that we need to watch out for."

"There probably will…rookies aren't usually nominated…" Hinata added in a worried tone.

"What do you mean?" Naruto looked at her.

She exchanged glances between her teammates as she spoke. "The last time rookie genin took part in the exams…was five years ago…"

"Huh?" Naruto's eyes widened.

"Hn. So it is true…" Sasuke smirked. "Then we better impress them then."

"You bet we will." Naruto looked at Hinata who nodded in agreement.

"Do you think other rookie teams will compete too?" Naruto scratched his whisker.

"Definitely." Sasuke answered quickly. "If you were nominated everyone else is too."

Naruto glared at his rival. "You want me to stick these chopsticks up your nose?"

"Naruto! Behave." Hinata giggled.

* * *

As night fell the two parted ways from Sasuke and headed back to their apartment. Unlocking the door Naruto smiled at Hinata.

"Ladies first."

She smiled at walked in. He followed before locking the door again, he then turned towards her. "Ahem."

She looked at him and smiled. Walking over towards him she wrapped her arms around his neck giving his cheek a smooch. After returning the favor Naruto looked at her.

"Y'know, you were pretty quiet the whole way here."

She let go of him and fidgeted with her fingers as a deep blush creped over her face.

"Well…I was t-thinking…um…I am not s-scared b-but…I thought…that…maybe…" She gulped.

"You want us to sleep together again?"

She nodded. He gently ruffled her hair. "Sure…Gotta keep the nightmares away."

* * *

Even though the stars were out a team of genin was at the training ground. Pulling a kunai out of a straw training dummy the one in green spoke:

"Have you heard? There will be rookies taking the exams this year. That hasn't happened in five years."

"What? No way." The female member of the team with her hair in two buns said. "It's probably just some jonin trying to boost their egos."

"No it's true." The one in green confirmed. "And that is not all. Three of them are from Kakashi's squad."

"Well, that's interesting." The girl threw a kunai hitting a bull's-eye right above her other teammate with long hair who smirked adding:

"Either way it will not be good for them…"


	11. The chunin exams

**A/N:** It's almost 2018! Happy Holidays!

Training for the chunin exams was actually going quite well. After managing to climb to the top of the tree and to learn how to walk on water, team 7 was making amazing progress…and they were confident that nothing could get in their way.

Hinata's confidence increased quite a bit. After constant phrasing from her sensei and her teammates she became more aggressive with her Juken (Gentle Fist) as she was always holding back before so she wouldn't hurt her teammates. Juken strikes really hurt but Naruto and Sasuke proved they could take anything.

Their mornings began with a breakfast at the local dango, sushi or other shops and their training sessions ended with a dinner at Ichiraku…or somewhere where Sasuke wanted to go. After dinner they would separate, Sasuke would go home and Naruto and Hinata would go back to the apartment and cuddle up in his bed for the night.

Those days went by as the day of the chunin exams finally came.

Naruto fixed his headband in the mirror. He glanced over to his roommate. "You ready?" She nodded placing her hair brush back in the drawer.

* * *

As the genin gathered in front of the academy building they all headed inside except for Sasuke who was waiting for a loud "Yo!" that he finally heard after some time. He glanced over to his two teammates. "Hey." He greeted them blandly. "Let's go in."

Getting into the building there was a ruckus in front of room 301. As they got closer to the large number of genin gathered in front of the door Naruto asked:

"Room 301? That's where we're supposed to go in, right?"

"No way… room 301 is supposed to be on the third floor…" Sasuke narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"That's right! We're on the second …floor..." Naruto trailed off in confusion.

"Byakugan!" Hinata smirked. "A genjutsu…"

"Hn…I thought so…"

Walking by the group of genin they saw that two of them were blocking the door not letting anyone in. As a genin in a tight green bodysuit and a weird haircut tried to get past them they insulted and punched him sending him on his rear.

"Please let us through, we're supposed to check in." His female teammate tried to get past them too only to get punched as well.

"He hit her for no reason…"

"Yeah, that's harsh…"

The mean genin's head snapped towards one of the genin. "Did you say harsh? Hah. You came here to become a chunin, a title that requires a lot of work and if you think this is harsh then cowards like you don't belong here."

The other bully spotted Sasuke, Naruto and Hinata walking around the crowd and going down the hallway. "Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

Sasuke faced the guy. "Where do you think? The examination room is on the third floor."

"What is he saying we **are** on the third floor…" The other genin looked at them in confusion.

"Are you blind?" The bully pointed towards the number of the room.

"No. But if I was blind I would be arguing with you just like the rest because they didn't notice the genjutsu." Sasuke answered calmly as he continued to walk.

The bully smirked and the number 301 blurred and warped into 201.

"You must be really smart to notice the genjutsu **and** to turn your back on me like that!" The bully yelled out to Sasuke.

"Hn." Sasuke didn't even look back but he had to as another voice called out to him.

"Hey. You're a rookie, aren't you? How old are you anyway?"

Sasuke faced the guy with long hair. "I'm not obliged to answer."

"What?" Neji's eyebrow twitched.

TenTen giggled. _"Cute."_

"It's common courtesy to say your own name before asking someone else's." Sasuke added calmly.

Neji was about to snap back but his eyes focused on someone else. "Lady Hinata?" He almost smiled at her. "I'm surprised to see **you** here." He was even more surprised as Hinata looked at him with determination in her eyes.

" _Lady?"_ Naruto scratched his cheek in confusion. His eyes widened as made the connection. "Hey." Neji turned to him. "Your eyes are the same as Hinata's, so you're a Hyuga too, huh?"

"And who might you be?"

Naruto put his hands in his pockets and calmed his expression mimicking Sasuke. "I'm not obliged to answer."

As the rest of the genin laughed, Neji glared at the blonde. Naruto slightly smiled at him.

"To have the audacity to make a comedy show out of a serious situation…you must be that Uzumaki clown Kakashi took under his wing."

"Well, looks like I'm well known among the leaf ninja…but that's how it is when you're the best of the best, right Sasuke?" Naruto smirked cockily.

"Hn." Sasuke nodded in approval. _"Idiot…"_

"Now, I still don't know your name but I think you won't tell me anyway. Although, Hinata could tell me cuz it looks like you know each other. "

Hinata gulped. Neji glared daggers at him. "Get your nose out of the Hyuga. It is none of your business."

Neji looked like he was ready to attack but Naruto still decided to push it. "Well I couldn't if I wanted to cuz I left my big red nose at home."

"Well, isn't he ballzy." The bullies whispered among the laughter in the hallway.

"Let's go Naruto, we've wasted enough time. " Sasuke started to walk away again. Naruto and Hinata followed.

Neji looked at the symbol on the back of Sasuke's shirt. _"Hmmm…Sasuke Uchiha…"_

* * *

When the three were far enough from the crowd Naruto laughed. "Oh, that was a good one."

"Just don't get too confident." Sasuke shook his head.

As they were about to walk up the stairs a voice stopped them in their tracks. "Hey you, with the attitude!"

They turned around to see the guy who got punched in the hallway. "I want to fight you, right here and right now."

"Sasuke, we do not have time for this, the exam starts in thirty minutes…" Hinata spoke in concern.

"Don't worry, all I need is five seconds."

"And **I'm** too confident?" Naruto crossed his arms.

"My name is Rock Lee. You said that it's common courtesy to give my name first…Sasuke Uchiha."

"So you know me…" Sasuke's eyes narrowed.

"Indeed." Lee took his stance. "And it will be an honor…to beat you."

Sasuke charged at Lee but just as he was about to punch him Lee disappeared and appeared below him and punched Sasuke in the face sending him flying. Sasuke barely landed properly. Rubbing his red cheek he glared at his opponent.

" _What the hell was that? When did he get that fast?"_

"Hn…I guess I underestimated you…but you're still going to lose." Sasuke got up on his feet activating his sharingan.

Hinata gasped in surprise. _"The sharingan? Has he mastered it?"_ She smiled as her teammate. _"Incredible…"_

Lee smirked recognizing the sharingan.

Sasuke confidently charged him again only to get punched in the gut. Not managing to land he rolled onto his stomach as he tried to get up. _"How?!"_

"You see, I know that the sharingan enables you to copy ninjutsu and genjutsu…but I use pure taijutsu." Lee explained. "And now…I will finish you off."

The bandage on his arm unwrapped more and more as he approached Sasuke in lightning speed. After sending him flying with an uppercut he found himself bellow Sasuke. "Dancing Leaf Shadow…" But before managing to perform his technique he realized his bandage was stuck. Following the path of his bandage his eyes widened seeing the spinning fan stuck at the end of it. "This is bad…"

"What do you think you're doing, Lee?!" A deep rusty voice echoed through the hall.

Landing on the wooden floor both him and Sasuke looked at the giant turtle that appeared in front of them. Sasuke looked at it with confusion…and Lee with fear.

As Lee was getting a lesson from the turtle Sasuke stepped away from him. _"What is this freak?!"_

His teammates rushed next to him. "What was that, dude? You just got beat up!"

"Shut up, idiot. He's tougher that he looks."

Naruto pointed at Lee. "He's apologizing to a turtle."

But the turtle clearly wasn't going to forgive him. "This deserved a punishment! Come out…Gai-sensei!" The turtle yelled in anger.

In a large puff of smoke a man appeared in the same outfit that Lee was wearing plus a chunin west. "Hey, what's shaking everybody? How ya doin'? Life treating you good?" he yelled cheerfully.

Naruto and Hinata squealed in horror. "That haircut looks even worse on him! And his eyebrows are almost alive!" Of course that loud statement came from Naruto.

That ticked Lee off. "HEY! GAI-SENSEI IS THE GREATEST SENSEI IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!"

"WELL EXCUSE ME FOR NOT NOTICING HIS GREATNESS! I WAS TOO BUSY WATCHING HIM CRAWL OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THE TURTLE!"

"HE DID NOT CRAWL OUT!"

"Calm down Lee, it's alright." Gai calmly put his hand on his students shoulder. "But now for your punishment!" And with that Lee was flying over to where his bandage was stuck in the wall.

Team 7's jaws dropped as the two started crying and hugging. After Gai wiped his tears off he looked towards them. "You must be Kakashi's team."

"Do you know him?" Sasuke asked.

"Do I know Kakashi?" Gai chuckled. "He and I are eternal rivals!"

"What?!" The three yelled in union.

He disappeared and showed up behind them shocking the three genin making Hinata latch onto Naruto's arm.

"I'm faster and stronger than Kakashi." Gai bragged.

" _He's definitely faster than Kakashi…"_ Sasuke clenched his fists.

A drop of sweat ran down Hinata's jaw as she looked at the clock on the wall. "G-g-guys we'll be l-late!" She let go of Naruto before her face flushed.

Gai cleared his throat and gave Lee a thumbs up. "Go Lee, and make me proud!"

"Yes, sir!" Lee collected his bandages and ran off.

"We better go too." Naruto said and they started walking. As they walked up the stairs Naruto spoke. "Did you see his hands?"

"Huh?"Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"They were bruised and stitched…I bet he trains every day until he drops. That's why he beat you."

Sasuke was quiet, but someone else broke the silence. "There you are… I almost got worried."

The three looked up to see Kakashi standing in front of the real room 301.

"I'm glad you all decided to come. You can now formally sign up for the exams."

"What do you mean?" Naruto tilted his head in confusion.

"The chunin exams only allow teams of three to participate."

Hinata started to shake. "So…if I d-did n-not come…then…"

Naruto gently intertwined his fingers with hers. "Don't worry, we're all here, we can go in."

"Yes." Kakashi confirmed. "I'm proud of all three of you. Good luck."

"We won't let you down, sensei. Believe it!"

And with that they opened the door and entered only to be met with glares of a hundred eyes. The room was full of ninja from other villages and they all looked like they were about to suck their souls out. But the cold and silent atmosphere was shut down by Ino who jumped onto Sasuke wrapping her hands around his neck.

"Sasuke, honey! Where have you been?!" She screeched happily.

Sasuke winced, not only because she had screamed in his ear but also because she was cutting off oxygen with her tight grip around his neck.

"You know, I missed your dark, good looks." Ino flirted.

"Get off." Sasuke roughly released himself out of her grip. And they another voice cut in.

"Hey, pig! Keep your dirty hands off of him, he's mine!"

Naruto looked behind Sasuke to see Choji, Shikamaru, Shino, Kiba and a fuming Sakura who was stomping towards them.

"Beat it, forehead! Can't you see I'm the one he's attracted to?"

Sakura growled at the blonde kunoichi. Stomping up to her she grabbed her arm. "In your dreams, pig!"

They were grabbing onto each other's hair until something caught Ino's eye and she stopped yelling as her expression became a mixture of confusion and surprise, like somebody turned off a switch in her.

Sakura raised an eyebrow at the sudden change on her rival's face.

"Look." Ino whispered pointing towards Naruto and Hinata who were still holding hands.

"Huh? Are those two…?" Sakura's eyes widened as she remember the time she saw them at the supermarket.

"That's why she always defends him…" Ino brought her back from her thoughts. Turning towards her she raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"She likes him. Who would have thought…the shy, quiet wallflower with the loudest moron in the village. They're not for each other at all…" Ino whispered.

"Well, opposites attract, I guess…" Sakura whispered back.

Their awkward fight to conversation was interrupted by a guy with gray hair and glasses walking up to them. "Hey, you're the rookies aren't you? I think you should keep it down."

"And who are you to tell us what to do?" Ino pointed at him in annoyance.

"I'm Kabuto Yakushi…but really, look around…"

The rookies turned their heads to meet the cold glares of other ninja in the room. Naruto gulped and released his grip on Hinata's hand as his started to sweat.

"You've caused quite a show." Kabuto fixed his glasses with his finger. "The candidates look tougher his year, I wouldn't get them angry if I were you."

"This year?" Sasuke spoke. "This is not your first time taking the exams?"

"No…uh…it's actually my seventh…" Kabuto scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Seventh?…I knew this exam would be a drag…" Shikamaru whined.

"Since you have a lot of experience with the exams can you tell us about them?" Sakura asked Kabuto.

Kabuto smiled pulling out a large stack of orange cards."Sure, what do you want to know? You can ask me anything. On these cards I have something on just about everyone here…even you guys."

Sasuke walked up to him. "Everyone?"

"You name it I have it."

"Show me…Rock Lee."

"You even have a name, huh? Well then…" He pulled a card out of the deck and put the card on the floor and started spinning it with his finger.

"What are you doing?" Ino asked in confusion.

"I'm concentrating my chakra into the card to reveal the information stored in it." A bit of smoke puffed out of the card and Lee's data appeared on it.

"Here…Rock Lee…looks like he's a year older than you guys… he completed eleven c-rank and twenty d-rank missions. His taijutsu has improved recently but his other abilities are pretty wobbly. He was noticed as a strong genin last year but for some reason he decided not to compete in the exams, so this is his first year, just like yours."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Not as impressive as I thought."

"The leader of his team is Gai."Kabuto continued. "His team consists of TenTen and Neji Hyuga…"

"Neji." Naruto crossed his arms. "That guy…"

"Some of these guys don't look intimidating and some are a mystery like the genin from the small Sound Village, but I wouldn't underestimate anyone." Kabuto put his cards away.

* * *

Somewhere in the middle of the crowd of ninjas three of them were the ones Kabuto was talking about . Sound is their specialty so of course they heard his insults even though they were far away from him.

"Did you hear that?" Kin said.

"Yeah, he called us small…and a mystery." Zaku's brow twitched.

"Let's clear some of the mystery for him." Dosu said as they all moved in the speed of sound towards their target.

Dosu was about to hit Kabuto but sensing him he ducked. Kabuto smirked but a second later the groaned as he fell to the ground along with the pieces of his glasses.

"Kabuto!" Naruto was about to jump in front of him but Sasuke stopped him. "Don't you idiot! You don't know what how they hit him, imagine what they could do to you."

Kabuto got back on his feet, but before Zaku could give him a punch himself a loud and deep voice interrupted their brawl.

"Alright you baby faced degenerates! Quit the playground fights! Who gave you permission to hurt each other anyway?!"

In a large smoke cloud a group of jounin appeared along with a tall, scary looking man dressed in black with scars on his face and a bandana wrapped around his head.

"Listen up! You will each be given a number which will determine where you will sit. Once you are seated the written portion of the chunin exams will begin!"

"Naruto squealed earning a confused look from the other rookies. "D-did he just say…"

"…A **written** exam?!"


	12. The turn of events

"If one member gets a zero the whole team fails?! What kind of rule is that?!"One of the genin shouted getting up from his seat.

Naruto slammed his head on the table. _"Ugggghhhhh…I'm screwed..."_

"That's not good for you then…" A familiar voice next to him whispered.

Naruto raised his head looking to his right at the more than familiar face.

"You were always bad at tests." The person said in sympathy.

Naruto scratched his head a little embarrassed. "Sakura? Geez, I didn't even notice you…"

"All right, listen up!" Ibiki shouted and all eyes and ears focused on him. After a few more ridiculous rules the test began and so did the noise of papers flipping and pencils clanking accompanied with quiet groans of those who didn't know what to write. One of them was Naruto. Dropping his pencil onto the table he grabbed his hair in frustration. His blue eyes analyzed the paper as he read the complicated questions in a low whisper but still loud enough for Sakura to hear.

"Determine the coordinates of the ninja at position B if the shuriken aimed at him was going at 60 miles per hou- what does this even mean?!" He slapped his hand over his forehead.

Sakura giggled. He was in trouble but she doesn't have it easy either. She had the highest score in class on tests so she somewhat understood the questions but they were still a bit too difficult for her. Relying on her teammates she decided to use her brains as best as she can until they came up with a plan.

Almost 20 minutes into the test some of the genin began to understand what was really going on. They were supposed to cheat so they did what they could…until…

"Number 61, fail! Number 70 and number 130,that means you fail as well." One of the proctors announced.

"What?!" The guy with the number 61 on his desk got up slamming his pencil on it.

"Five strikes and you're out. You just failed the test."

And that was the first of many other genin whose numbers were called out. Some of them broke out into a fight saying it wasn't fair while others just walked out of the room in defeat.

" _There's gotta be something I can do…"_ Naruto panicked looking at his empty test. He grabbed his pencil with his shaky hand but dropped it again.

A few rows behind him Hinata's byakugan kept watch over both of her teammates. Sasuke was doing well thanks to his sharingan but… _"Oh, Naruto…"_ She knew he was bad at written tests so even before she took her seat she was thinking of a way to help him but upon hearing the rules she needed to think harder. Naruto has always praised her for her intelligence so she can't screw this up if she wants to prove that she is good enough, not just to her crush but to Neji too. Thanks to her byakugan she had answered most of the questions and she saw that Sasuke had answered most of them too but Naruto's paper was empty, not counting his signature on the top corner of the paper.

She fidgeted the pencil between her fingers trying to think of way to help him while hiding her byakugan by lowering her head, but her eyes caught something. She was a little worried that Sakura was sitting next to him but remembering their last conversation about her she didn't know if she should be worried about him liking her again. But what was this about Sakura sliding her test towards him? She read her lips: _Come on, look_. She was helping him?

Sakura glanced at Naruto. _"He's so…upset…I've never seen him like this before, he was always acting tough around me but now…"_ Her thoughts trailed off as she remembered all those times he had asked her out back at the academy. Even though he got rejected over and over again he was never upset about it and he just kept trying knowing that she would never accept. After she saw him holding hands with Hinata she realized that he got over her so he let his real self show not trying to act thought to impress her anymore. And then she remembered all the times she punched him, now that she thought about it most of the time it was for insulting Sasuke so it was basically for no reason. She felt bad for him so she decided to help him even though he's not her teammate.

Naruto was shocked at her offering to let him look at test but he didn't have any other choice.

"Come on, look." Sakura slid her paper a bit to the left towards Naruto.

But just when he was about to take a glance at her paper…

"Alright! There is fifteen minutes left, time for the tenth question!"

Naruto gulped. _"Damn it… this is my last chance to pass."_ He gripped his pencil in his hand.

However, Ibiki broke the anticipation among the genin by announcing that they can choose not to take the tenth question but that if they did and they still failed they will never be able to compete in the exams ever again.

After a few outbursts some genin began to raise their hand and they gave up on the test.

Hinata's whole body shook as she looked at her crush _."Oh, dear…Naruto…he will fail…and I don't know how to help him…but if he does his dream will be crushed…I cannot let that happen…Naruto…Sasuke…please forgive me for this…"_

But just before she could raise her hand…Naruto raised his…

Sakura, Sasuke and Hinata looked at Naruto in utter shock and disbelief.

Sasuke's mouth fell open. Not even the incredibly cool and calm Uchiha could stop his eyes and mouth from widening. If there is one person that he knew would NOT raise their hand it was Naruto so seeing him actually do it left him speechless. But he wasn't the only one. Sakura looked at Naruto's shaking form in surprise. She blinked rapidly but she realized she wasn't seeing things.

Hinata lowered both hands in her lap and tightly gripped the furry hem of her jacket trying to keep her composure. " _Na-Naru…to…there is just no way!"_

But even though it seemed like Naruto's hand was in the air for hours it had actually been just seconds before he slammed his hand on the table and looked Ibiki straight in the eye.

"Don't underestimate me! I don't quit and I don't run!"Naruto suddenly yelled out. "You can act tough all you want with your stupid rules, you're not gonna scare me away!" His voice rang through the quiet room. "I never go back on my word that's my nindo, my ninja way! And when I become Hokage someday YOU are gonna have to respect me. Believe it! Hmph." He crossed his arms and slumped back in his seat.

Everyone stared at the blonde but their gaze was directed towards Ibiki as he let out a chuckle. "Is that your final decision? You're willing to take the risk of never becoming a chunin?"

Naruto faced him again. "You want me to repeat all that? Maybe you should have written it down."

A vein on Sakura's forehead popped out. _"Idiot, making threats at the guy our future depends on isn't going to help! Cha!"_ Inner Sakura felt like strangling him.

"Very well then. For those of you remaining there is only one thing left to do." Ibiki announced. "And that is to tell you…

…that you have all passed the written portion of the exams!"

The genin in the room either gasped, blinked or dropped their pencils.

Naruto's eyes widened. "Say what?"

However, the excitement was nothing compared to the embarrassment that a lot of them felt when Ibiki told them that the true purpose of the exams was to gather information. Naruto paled a bit but he kept his cool.

Sakura raised an eyebrow at him. "You didn't figure it out?" She whispered.

"You did?" Naruto whispered back. Sakura shook her head and rolled her eyes.

After showing them his scars and a long, deep and emotional speech about chunin and comrades Ibiki was once again congratulating them on passing, but he got interrupted as the window on his left shattered and a ball of thick dark fabric flew through the window and unwrapped unveiling a busty woman with purple hair dressed in a mesh bodysuit, a skirt and a coat. The fabric pinned on the wall behind her with kunai said in big white letters:

 **Anko Mitarashi the sexy proctor of the second test of the chunin exam!**

"Alright maggots, it's time for the second part of the exams. Follow me!" She yelled out pumping her fist in the air.

Ibiki came out from behind the fabric. "You're early…again…"

A drop of sweat ran down her face and her cheeks reddened in humiliation, but the embarrassment was replaced with confusion as she looked at the genin. "Ibiki, you let all of them pass? You must be getting soft."

"Or it could be a stronger group of candidates this year." Ibiki responded.

"It doesn't matter, when I'm done with them more than half will be wiped out."Anko chuckled. "Your sensei will notify you about the location and date of the second exam, until then you're dismissed." And with that she disappeared in a puff of smoke along with the fabric.

* * *

Team 7 were outside the academy building walking away from it.

"Now that we passed, those guys will know not to mess with us!" Naruto folded his hands behind his head and grinned in satisfaction.

"I doubt that, idiot. It was sheer luck that we passed." Sasuke shook his head at his loud teammate but still quietly sighed in relief.

"So how about we go to Ichiraku to celebrate! I gotta tell Ayame and old man Teuchi we passed. Maybe they will even give us free bowls!" Naruto giggled in excitement.

"No thanks, I'm going home to train. I can't afford to be unprepared for the next test, especially now that I know it could be anything. Later." And with that Sasuke jumped on the nearest roof and headed home.

"Gee, can't that guy enjoy our passing at least for a second…Ah, forget him! You and I can go to Ichiraku alone, right Hinata?" He turned to his roommate catching a worried expression on her face. "Hinata?" He walked in front of her in concern.

"Hey, you ok?" He grabbed her shoulders trying to get her to face him.

He noticed the way she kept both her hands folded over her chest. They have been teammates for a month now and the two of them got a lot closer so Naruto learned to recognize what she felt just by looking at the placement of her hands because that was a habit of hers that she didn't let go of and she probably isn't even aware that she is doing it.

When she dropped her arms on her sides and she isn't trying to cover any part of her body that means that she is relaxed, if her hands are gripping the hem of her jacket she's nervous, if she's covering her face with them she's embarrassed, if she places her hands over her chin she's afraid, if she twiddles or taps her fingers together she's excited but if she folds her hands over her chest she's upset and there must be something wrong.

"Hey." He called out to her again, this time she looked up at him.

"C-can we just g-go home?" She said in a quiet shaky voice.

"Yeah, of course." He threw his arm over her shoulders and they continued walking.

A couple of silent minutes later he spoke up. "What's wrong?"

"We'll t-talk at home…please…" She sounded even more worried now.

"Ok…that's ok…" They were quiet the rest of the way.

* * *

When they finally got to their apartment the sun was starting to go down showing that the two were in no hurry to get home because Hinata knew that when they did she will have to tell him that they almost failed because of her.

Sitting down on the couch she lowered her head looking at her hands that were now in tight fists in her lap.

Naruto sat in front of her feet putting his chin between her knees. "What's wrong?" He blinked in surprise when she lifted her head and a few tears ran down her cheeks.

"I a-almost g-got u-us d-dis-squal-lified…" she stammered out.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I almost r-raised m-my h-hand…we would h-have f-f-failed b-because of m-me…"

"You wanted to raise your hand?... Why?"

She sniffed. "If we h-h-had…" She swallowed trying to control her stutter. "If we had failed…we could never become chunin…ever…that might make it harder…for you to become Hokage…"

Naruto's jaw dropped in disbelief.

"Both you and Sasuke have goals…I would have ruined them…"

"Hey…you wouldn't have ruined anything."He tried to comfort her. "I don't need to become a chunin to become Hokage, even if you did raise your hand I wouldn't be mad at you. Your intentions were good, although I don't know how Sasuke would have reacted but…hey, that's a mute point. We passed so no need to cry about it, ok?"

She wiped her tears and nodded.

"So uhh…what do we do for dinner?" He asked sheepishly.

"I will make you whatever you like." She raised her head to look at him. "It's the least I can do."

"I told you, don't worry about it." He got off of his knees and sat beside her throwing his arm over her shoulders and giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Plus, you know I like everything you make so make whatever you want."

She blushed at his soft smile and gentle words. Naruto's a hothead, it's easy to tick him off but he was so patient with her. He was just so sweet and kind towards her, always defending and protecting her, justifying her actions and praising her. Her family members would always lose their patience with her and get irritated by her stutter and gentle nature, but Naruto was the total opposite. That's what she loves about him, among many, many other things.

Leaning in she gave him a long kiss on the cheek. She was about to hug him back but he pulled away a bit to look at her.

"What? Dessert before dinner?" He winked at her mischievously.

She blushed even more and giggled. "Naruto!"

* * *

The day after they met Kakashi on the bridge where they usually meet ad he explained where the second part of the exams will be taking place…and that's where, the day after, they are standing…right now…looking at the dark woodsy area surrounded by a tall metal fence. And who was standing in front of it? The same weird lady who burst through Ibiki's exam room window days ago. As all genin who remained in the competition after the first exam gathered around her she yelled out:

"Listen up, maggots! It's time for the second part of the chunin exams! And it will take place in the battle training zone you see behind me!" She lowered her voice giving it an eerie tone. "But we like to call it…the Forest of Death."

"The forest of…death?" Hinata gulped.

"Don't worry." Naruto nudged her arm gently. "I bet that she's creepier than anything in that forest."

But he failed to notice Hinata's slight smile as something else caught his eye.

A rock…on the ground…shaped like a perfectly smooth rectangle…with eye holes…slowly shimming towards him.

"Oh, brother…" Naruto pinched his nose and shook his head. "Are you serious?" He looked at the rock.

The rock chuckled. "You saw through my disguise again. You're quick boss." A muffled voice said before the rock exploded with colorful smoke. What was left behind when the smoke cleared were three kids on their knees on the ground coughing. "I think we used too much gun powder, guys…" The familiar voice said in between coughs.

The three kids looked up at Naruto and Hinata who were looking at them in confusion. Even Sasuke's eyebrow rose.

The kids looked at each other before getting up and introducing themselves.

"I'm Moegi, the sassiest kunoichi in preschool. Check me out!" The female one of the three spoke in a sweet voice.

"I love algebra, call me Udon!" The boy with glasses and a runny nose said making hand sighs with his hands which were peeking out from his long sleeves.

"And I'm the number one ninja in the village, Konohamaru! And when we're all together…"

"We are the Konohamaru ninja squad!" They said in union.

The loud introduction drew everyone's attention towards them and even interrupted another fight between Sakura and Ino who weirdly looked towards Naruto.

"Why doesn't it surprise me that Naruto's playing around with little kids…" Sakura shook her head. Both girls forgot about the fact that they were arguing just seconds before.

"Hey, what are those goggles on your head?" Naruto lamely asked the three.

"You used to wear goggles, remember? So we're copying you!" Konohamaru grinned.

"Oh." Naruto responded flatly. The only reason he wore those goggles was because he really wanted to wear the leaf headband like the others but couldn't because he couldn't graduate. The goggles weren't a nice reminder.

"Oh, come on boss! You ought to be more excited!" Konohamaru yelled in disappointment.

Hinata giggled into her fingers. _"They are so cute."_

The giggle drew Moegi's attention towards Hinata. Moegi's eyes widened. "Hey, it's that…?" She whispered to Udon. He fixed his glassed and looked towards her. "Oh!"

 **Flashback:**

It was another day at the academy and the classes were about to finish. As all the students in the class packet their school supplies, Konohamaru turned towards his two best friends and whispered. "Hey guys, I have something important to tell you so wait up after the bell okay?" The two nodded.

After the bell, Iruka was exiting the classroom and saw the three sneaking around the hallway. Following them to see what they were up to he stopped next to the wall only to hear a very interesting conversation.

"I saw boss yesterday after school."Konohamaru started.

Iruka raised an eyebrow. _"Boss? Oh, he must mean Naruto."_ He smiled.

"And guess what?" Konohamaru continued. "He has a girlfriend!"

" _Huh?!"_ Iruka's jaw dropped. _"Did he manage to win Sakura over after all?"_

"No way, really?" Moegi squealed.

"Boss is so cool!" Udon sniffed.

"And because we're interviewing them today you'll get to see her! She's really pretty!" Konohamaru exclaimed. "She has dark hair with bangs and these weird eyes!"

He described her as the three ran down the hallway and out of the building to prepare for the interview leaving the baffled Iruka in the hallway.

"No way…" He whispered remembering the shy Hyuga. He remembered the time he gave them an assignment and while the students were writing he walked around the classroom observing their work, but as he walked by his timid student he saw that she had already finished and was now drawing a large heart around Naruto's name in her notebook which was already full of hearts and chibi drawings of Naruto. He smiled at her as they made eye contact and she blushed a shade of red that was only possible for her and shrunk in her seat. Later after the class she walked up to him and shyly begged him not to tell anyone.

"Wow…"Iruka grinned. "What a match, indeed."

 **End of flashback:**

"Yeah, that has to be her." Udon whispered back. Moegi nodded.

"Hey, what's this all about? You kids are interrupting the exams."Anko walked up to them placing her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, I was just about to ask what you guys are doing here." Naruto looked at Konohamaru.

"We're here to do an interview for the academy's newspaper."

"Oh, that's right. Lord Hokage told me about that."Anko remembered. "Alright then, we are taking a ten minute break!" she announced walking away.

"An interview?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, we are interviewing people here, but there is one person who is the most important." Konohamaru pulled out a notebook and a pen.

"And who's that?" Naruto asked.

Konohamaru chuckled. "Well, it's you, boss!"


	13. The forest of death

" _Hey, what's this all about? You kids are interrupting the exams."Anko walked up to them placing her hands on her hips._

" _Yeah, I was just about to ask what you guys are doing here." Naruto looked at Konohamaru._

" _We're here to do an interview for the academy's newspaper."_

" _Oh, that's right. Lord Hokage told me about that."Anko remembered. "Alright then, we are taking a ten minute break!" she announced walking away._

" _An interview?" Naruto asked._

" _Yeah, we are interviewing people here, but there is one person who is the most important." Konohamaru pulled out a notebook and a pen._

" _And who's that?" Naruto asked._

 _Konohamaru chuckled. "Well, it's you, boss!"_

"Huh? Me?" Naruto exclaimed in surprise but his shocked expression was quickly replaced with a grin. "Well then if that's the case, I'm gonna make it clear to your readers why the Leaf has the greatest ninja in the world, myself included of course." He smiled cockily.

"Alright, boss. First, tell us a little bit about yourself."

"Okay!" Naruto grinned and fixed his headband. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki, the Leaf's number one most unpredictable, knuckleheaded ninja, and I'm on my way to becoming the greatest Hokage this village has ever seen. I'm a member of team 7, my sensei is Kakashi Hatake and my teammates are Hinata…" he pointed towards her. "…and Sasuke." He stuck out his thumb in Sasuke's direction.

"Okay then. Let's hear something about them too." Konohamaru looked towards Hinata with a hopeful smile.

"Uhh…ok…" Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Wasn't I supposed to be the star here?" he whispered to Konohamaru.

"Yeah but the whole article can't be just about you, boss."

"Yeah…ah… I mean of course not but…" Naruto reddened in embarrassment but Hinata's chuckle drew his attention to her. "Hey, don't you laugh at me!" He walked towards her pulling her close with his arm while ruffling her hair and jokingly pinching her nose with his other hand making her giggle even more.

"You're so silly." She blushed.

"Yeah, but that's why you like me." He winked at her making her blush even more.

Their eyes met and for just a couple of seconds they were lost in each other's gazes.

" _There's that tingly feeling again…"_ Naruto pulled himself together and gently rubbed his nose against Hinata's in a sweet Eskimo kiss intensifying the butterflies in her stomach.

"Awww…" Moegi giggled while everyone just stared at the two. Sasuke looked away annoyed while Sakura and Ino looked at the two with their mouths open.

"Who knew that Naruto could be so…so…affectionate?" Ino tried to find the right word for what she was seeing.

"Yeah…" Looking at the two Sakura felt a tinge of jealousy and a bit of sadness feeling that she just lost a fan boy of hers, probably the only one she's ever had. Was she that awful to him that he got over her so easily? Especially after having a crush on her for years and asking her out a hundred times a day, he seemed to have forgotten about her completely. The feeling of envy increased a bit as she remembered that Sasuke never showed that kind of affection towards her and maybe even never will, but Naruto sure would have if she had given him a chance. Right now she just needed to try and be friends with him again and apologize for insulting him.

* * *

After a long interview with all the rookies, the very pleased Konohamaru left with Moegi and Udon.

"Boss's girlfriend is very cute!" Moegi exclaimed.

"I know, right." Udon agreed.

"Yeah, but unlike him she's very quiet. She didn't say much about herself for the interview." Konohamaru said. "Anyway, let's go make this into the best newspaper the academy's ever had!"

"Yeah!" The two agreed.

* * *

Back at the exam location all the participants were wandering around with a piece of paper they needed to read and sign in case they actually died during the exam which made the situation even more serious and showed just how dangerous this exam is.

After getting one of the two scrolls the teams were let into the forest. No one knew what to expect and some of them had no idea that just hours after getting into the woods they were eliminated by chakra sucking slugs, traps, eating poisonous plants and getting knocked out by peeking into the scrolls which was forbidden for a reason.

But team 7 wasn't doing any better. After getting separated from each other by a powerful wind jutsu, Hinata located Sasuke with her byakugan and after they met Naruto came running back towards them only to be punched in the stomach by Hinata who recognized him as a fake. After the fake Naruto unveiled himself as a ninja with long black hair he attacked them with a genjutsu getting them to see their own death. While Sasuke managed to snap out of it by stabbing himself in the leg, Hinata didn't as she was sitting still, her entire body shaking unable to move.

Meanwhile, a little further away in the woods Naruto broke out of a giant snake's stomach using his shadow clones and headed towards his teammates. What he found made his stomach flip. Hinata was sitting against a tree with her eyes wide open while Sasuke was in front of her holding a kunai in his thigh and his other hand on his neck covering something black.

The creepy ninja looked at him with a scary grin. "So, you've managed to escape from my friend."

" _So it wasn't just a random giant snake, this guy sent it."_ Naruto frowned.

"Okay, now slider away before I kick your ass!"

"Idiot! You don't know who you're dealing with!" Sasuke yelled at him surprising him.

What surprised him even more was when Sasuke turned to the guy pulling their earth scroll out. "Here, take it. Just leave us alone!" He threw the scroll towards the guy but just before he could wrap his long tongue around it he got socked by Naruto who caught the scroll and jumped over to Sasuke.

"Have you lost your mind! What do you think you're doing?! When did Sasuke become such a coward?!"

"Shut up, moron! Just give him the stupid scroll!"

"No way in hell!"

"He's too strong for us!"

Naruto was just about to yell back but he got caught in the guy's tongue who pulled him closer.

"Ugh, gross! Let me go before I yank that tongue out of your throat!" Naruto tried releasing himself but it was no use.

The guy laughed maliciously. "You sure are loud for such a little brat. What a fool." He reached out for the scroll but stopped when he felt a powerful surge of chakra. Looking up and Naruto he was met with his red eyes.

" _What is this chakra? It's like evil itself. Could it be?"_

Meanwhile, Sasuke managed to shake Hinata out of the genjutsu. She looked towards her crush and gasped. "I-is he…?"

"Yeah, that's definitely the real Naruto."

"Let...me…DOWN!" Naruto growled punching the guy so hard he broke three threes in a row slamming into the forth one unconscious. Running towards his teammates he yelled at them. "Run!"

* * *

Anko was getting closer to them having heard that Orochimaru was in the forest, finding him standing next to a row of broken trees she knew it meant no good.

Fortunately, team 7 managed to escape and they were now sitting against a rock next to a river and panting heavily. After having a much needed meal of roasted fish the rested until they were approached by Kabuto. Recognizing him they decided to trust him and headed back into the woods only to get in trouble again.

After getting attacked by a team with masks who put a genjutsu on them they were fortunately able to beat them thanks to Naruto.

"That was amazing, you've got a lot of energy in you." Kabuto smiled at Naruto.

"Meh, it was nothing."Naruto grinned before walking up to the three ninja who were sprawled out unconscious and going through their pouches. "Hey guys!" He jumped up holding a scroll. "Look, it's just what we need, a heaven scroll!"

"Good for you." Kabuto fixed his glasses.

Hinata exhaled in relief. _"Thank goodness…"_

"We should go, the time is almost up."

After getting to the building in the middle of the forest they were met with Kabuto's teammates.

"Kabuto, where were you?"

"Sorry, I got a little… sidetracked."

Waving goodbye to Kabuto they entered the building.

"Look." Hinata pointed at a script on the wall.

"What is it?" Naruto scratched his head.

Hinata read the script out loud:

"If qualities of heaven are what you desire, acquire wisdom to take your mind higher. If earthly qualities are what you lack, train you body and prepare to attack. When heaven and earth are opened together the peerless path with become rageous forever. This…something is the secret way that guides us from this place today."

"This…what? What does all of that even mean?" Naruto asked even though he was listening to Hinata very carefully hypnotized by her sweet, gentle voice pronouncing the rhymes written on the wall.

"It's about the scrolls but there is a letter missing…I think… I think we should open them now."

"Ok." Naruto gulped handing her one of the scrolls. A drop of sweat ran down both their faces as they slowly opened the scrolls. They both looked at the content of the scrolls in confusion.

"A man?...A person?" Naruto flipped the scroll around.

"Quickly, drop the scrolls it's a summoning jutsu!" Sasuke yelled out.

The two threw the scrolls away and they started to smoke before exploding.

"Long time no see." A voice behind the smoke said…a rather familiar voice. The smoke cleared revealing…

"Iruka –sensei!" Naruto yelled happily.

"Hi you three…phew…and you're just in time too…congratulations, you've passed the second part of the exams." Iruka smiled at them.

"We…passed?" Hinata looked at Iruka who gave her an honest smile. "You did."

"Alright!" Naruto yelled out latching onto Iruka.

"Hey, hey, it's still too early to celebrate. The exams aren't over yet. And Naruto…"

"Hm?" Naruto looked up at him in confusion.

Iruka ruffled his favorite student's hair. "Just…don't overdo it, okay?"

"Iruka-sensei." Naruto's eyes glowed with determination. "When you gave me this headband you acknowledged me as a ninja, and you know yourself how tough I am, so don't worry I got this! Believe it!"

"Um sensei…what does that writing on the wall mean?" Hinata asked.

"That's actually why I'm here. If you lack in body strength you need to be powerful in intelligence…but if your fault is in your intellect…Naruto…" Naruto frowned and crossed his arms while Hinata giggled. "You need to be strong in spirit. But if you have them both…" He looked at Sasuke. "Then you need to make sure you know how to use them together in order to be invincible."

"Hn."

"Okay, okay, I get it, I get it…"

Iruka smiled at Naruto. "You've come a long way…I'm proud of you…I'm proud of all three of you. Good job."

Naruto chuckled and scratched his neck in embarrassment and Hinata blushed.

"Alright, what's next?" Naruto grinned.

* * *

All of the genin who passed lined up in front of the Hokage and other jonin including their sensei who were looking at them proudly…some of them…a little too proudly.

"I see your team managed to pass, Kakashi…" Gai spoke not even looking at his rival. "But of course with my team still in the competition your team is doomed to failure. I think it would be for the best if you just pull them out, don't you agree Kakashi?" He chuckled and turned to his rival.

Kakashi merely looked at him. "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"GAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Gai screamed before he calmed down and flames appeared in his eyes. _"Boy, I hate it when you act so cool, but you will not get the best of me!"_

TenTen looked at the two from her spot in the lineup. _"So that's Gai-sensei's eternal rival? Based on looks alone…I'd say Gai-sensei would lose."_

But Lee had a totally different opinion. _"Man, Gai-sensei is so cool, I mean he practically glows with cool!"_

"Alright, listen up." The Hokage spoke. "Before we move on onto the final exam we will have a preliminary exam."

"A preliminary exam?" Sakura asked.

"Well, you see…we didn't expect so many of you to still be here…" Hayate said surprising the present genin.

After the Hokage gave a long speech explaining why the exams are actually held Hinata looked at Sasuke in concern.

"Sasuke…are you sure you are well enough to fight?"

Sasuke rubbed his neck. "Yeah, don't worry about it."

"Hey, what is that thing? What happened to you guys in the forest while I was away?" Naruto asked.

"That guy who attacked us bit Sasuke on the neck…the mark is giving him trouble."

"Huh? He bit you? Well, you better be okay cuz it won't be fair if I'm kicking your ass while you're unwell."

Sasuke turned to Naruto. "Naruto…"

"Hm?"

"You're among the ones I want to fight the most."

Naruto blinked in surprise. Was he just acknowledged by his rival? It felt so amazing to know that he's finally good enough to match him.

"Okay, let's start the first match. The names of the two who will be facing each other will appear on the screen above me." Hayate said.

The screen glowed and green letters appeared on it and after a few second spelled out the names:

 **Yoroi Akado vs Sasuke Uchiha**


	14. The preliminary rounds

" _Okay, let's start the first match. The names of the two who will be facing each other will appear on the screen above me." Hayate said._

 _The screen glowed and green letters appeared on it and after a few second spelled out the names:_

 _ **Yoroi Akado vs Sasuke Uchiha**_

Sasuke smirked.

" _Why did it have to be the first match?"_ Hinata looked at her teammate in concern. "Are you sure you can fight?"

"Yeah." Sasuke nodded.

"Make sure you don't lose, cuz if you do I won't be able to kick your butt in the finals." Naruto grinned.

"Hn."

"Okay, Sasuke…Yoroi…you stay here and everyone else, go up the stairs and clear the area so we can start." Hayate announced.

* * *

It seemed like Sasuke had this in the bag but only minutes later Naruto was gripping the railing as Sasuke groaned getting pinned to the concrete floor by Yoroi whose hand was on his forehead sucking out his chakra as Sasuke desperately tried to get lose. He managed to escape Yoroi's jutsu but only by activating his sharingan which caused the mark to begin to take over his body. A disguised Orochimaru licked his lips in satisfaction seeing that his mark is working but seconds later him and Kakashi watched in amazement as Sasuke managed to stop the marks from spreading down his arm and the black flame marks that were covering his neck and arm receded back into the mark on his neck.

Minutes later Hinata and Naruto watched in relief as Hayate pronounced Sasuke as the winner after he pummeled Yoroi to the ground with his leg.

Sasuke was about to fall on his back from the lack of chakra but he was held upright by Kakashi. "We need to seal away that mark." Kakashi almost whispered to Sasuke's surprise. _"He knows?"_ "Now." Kakashi added.

"I want to watch the rest of the matches."

"Don't argue with me. That mark could spiral out of control at any time." Kakashi frowned.

Sasuke snarled angrily. "Fine." And with that the two disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Where'd they go?" Naruto blinked frantically.

"Do not worry." Gai walked up to them along with his three students. "Kakashi will take good care of him."He smiled revealing his sparkling teeth.

"He better not make him quit because of that mark." Naruto said quietly.

"I'm sure he won't." Hinata placed her hand over Naruto's.

"Yeah, you're right. He's too proud of us." He smiled at her and she smiled back.

"Okay, time to announce the second match." Hayate said loudly.

* * *

After Shino's bugs blew the overconfident Zaku away and Kankuro cracked Misumi's bones, the board showed a very surprising matchup:

 **Sakura Haruno vs Ino Yamanaka**

The two looked at each other in shock before they frowned in determination and headed down the stairs. The fight started off and continued with the two exchanging punches for a while before they stopped for a bit after Sakura slapped Ino.

Naruto looked at the two from above. "What happened to Sakura's hair?"

"You…you didn't notice it before?" Hinata looked at him in surprise.

"No…" Naruto frowned realizing that he wasn't looking at her at all like he usually would, he was surprised to realize that he pushed himself away from her. He looked at Hinata who met his eyes and blinked in surprise, her cheeks reddened a bit. He gave her a sheepish smile and shrugged.

"Guess I was paying too much attention to you to notice…" He said softly and winked at her making her blush even more and she looked away tapping her fingers together.

Ino's yelling drew their attention back to the match and they both watched in shock as Ino cut her ponytail and threw her hair towards Sakura making the strands disperse in the air and float down to the floor.

The fight was a final straw between the two as they thought that they were finally going to reveal who is better but that will have to remain a mystery as the fight ended up being a double knock out.

* * *

After Temari defeated TenTen and Kin got overshadowed by Shikamaru (get it?), the board was about to spell out the names of the next match.

Shikamaru slowly walked back to his team. "That was clever." Naruto added as Shikamaru walked past him. The clever tactic to unnoticeably get Kin near the wall so that she knocks herself out was a genius idea indeed.

"Yeah, but it was a drag…now let's if you're more clever than you look."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto pouted.

Shikamaru sighed and pointed to the board. Naruto turned towards the board and his confused expression changed to a happy one as he saw the names on the board:

 **Kiba Inuzuka vs Naruto Uzumaki**

"Alright! Finally! It's my turn to kick ass!" Naruto pumped his fist in the air.

"Look Akamaru, it's us against the kid! This is gonna be easy!" KIba ran down the stairs.

Naruto looked at Kiba and smirked as he saw him looking at him. He turned to Hinata. "Wanna give me a kiss for good luck? I mean, I don't need it but…" He trailed off with a smile.

Hinata giggled before leaning in and kissing him on the cheek.

Kiba blinked and frowned at the sight. _"No way…"_ His eyes followed Naruto as he jumped over the rails and landed across from him with a grin.

"I've been waiting forever for this! Sorry Kiba, don't take it personally if I blow you away."

A vain on Kiba's forehead pulsed. "Argh! That's what I wanted to say, only not so politely!" Amakaru barked in agreement.

"Now wait a minute, what's the puppy doing here? Is that even fair?" He turned to Hayate.

"A dog is not considered as a second ninja, he is within the rules."

Naruto grimaced at him "Ehhh… whatever, fine with me." He then turned to his opponent. "You'll need all the extra help you can get."

"Such big words for such a little squirt." He them feed a small brown pill to Akamaru and he took one himself.

Naruto tuned to Hayate again. "Hey, that's cheating!"

"Food pills are considered a weapon, they're allowed."

Naruto stared at him in disbelief. "The heck are you even here for then?!"

A drop of sweat appeared on Hayate's brow as he blinked in embarrassment.

The first ten minutes of the fight didn't go so well as Naruto kept getting punched by Kiba and got thrown onto the ground so many times a few drops of blood were starting to leak from his forehead. Kiba was fast so Naruto couldn't find an opening to hit him back so all he could do was to try and defend himself, but no matter how many times Kiba slammed him into the dirt he kept getting up again and each time he got up Hinata gripped the rails harder and couldn't stop a smile from appearing on her face. "I know you can do it." She whispered to herself quietly cheering him on still unsure if she could do it vocally yet but she was sure she will later in the fight as she was confident in Naruto's victory.

Meanwhile, Kiba was getting fed up with the fact that his opponent just wouldn't stay down on the ground so that he could finish him off, even resorting to his Gatsuga didn't help him. Coming up with a better plan he threw smoke grenades at Naruto and large clouds of thick dark smoke prevented the audience from seeing what's going on. Noticing that Kiba had stopped attacking Naruto, Hinata activated her byakugan only to gasp at the sight beneath the smoke.

"What?" Rock Lee suddenly appeared next to her but she ignored his curiosity and surprised everyone by yelling.

"Yes! That's genius Naruto!" She jumped on her toes looking at the smoke in awe while others were looking at her.

"I see…very impressive."Kakashi agreed.

Once the smoke cleared there was no sight of Naruto but three Kibas were standing in a circle looking at each other.

"Woah, that's brilliant." Sakura stared at the three.

"Who knew Naruto could be that smart." Ino agreed. They were both glad they woke up before the fight started.

"Even that exhausted he managed to pull off a perfect transformation, there's no way he should be able to do that!" Shikamaru frowned.

Who knew that this would be such an exciting fight to watch.

"I see what you're trying to pull." Kiba exchanged glances between the two copies of himself. "I admit, you look exactly like me and that threw me off for a moment but I still know which one is not Akamaru. Wanna know why?!" He punched one of his copies sending it rolling on the ground before it lay motionlessly on the floor. "I can smell you, kid." He rubbed his nose. But the confident smirk on his face was gone after the copy dispersed revealing a ruffed up Akamaru.

Kiba's eyes went wide. "No way?!"

Kurenai stared at him in shock. _"He fooled Kiba!"_

Shino was shocked as well underneath his high collar. "Kiba's nose got them mixed up…but how?"

Kiba looked at his battered canine companion and angrily turned to the second copy punching it as well.

"So it's **you!** Messing with me!"

The second copy turned out to be Akamaru as well.

"What?!" Kiba blinked. Hearing a loud poof he turned only to see Naruto's fist which dug into his cheek sending him flying.

"When Kiba recognized the fake copy of him Naruto was clever enough to reappear as Akamaru which totally fooled Kiba! Way to go Naruto!" Lee flashed two thumbs up.

"You are amazing, Naruto!" Hinata grinned in excitement.

Kakashi looked at her in surprise. He has never seen that smile on her.

"Shadow clone jutsu!"

Kiba looked up and wiped the blood from his nostril and saw five clones of Naruto, but just as he got up the clones circled him punching him into the air.

"Na-"

Punch.

"Ru-"

Punch.

"To!"

Punch!

Kiba grimaced in pain but just before he could open his eyes the last clone punched him back towards the ground where the real Naruto finished Kiba off.

"Uzumaki barrage!"

Kakashi looked at him recognizing Sasuke's move. _"Hm…well, at least he changed the name."_

Hayate examined the groaning Kiba then turned to Naruto. "The winner is Naruto Uzumaki!"

"WOOHOO!" Lee pumped his fists in the air.

"Amazing, who thought he could beat Kiba?!" Shikamaru exclaimed.

"Mm-Hm." Ino nodded in agreement.

"That was incredible…" Sakura watched Naruto wide-eyed. _"How did he get this strong?"_

Naruto walked confidently up the stairs with his hands behind his head and a proud toothy grin on his face. When he got near Hinata she jumped into his embrace. "You were amazing! But you're hurt! Here, let me see."

She untied his headband because the blood was coming from underneath it and there was a gash on his forehead.

"Does it really hurt?" She asked concerned.

"It doesn't hurt at all." He smiled at her.

"But it's bleeding." She pulled a handkerchief out of her pouch and started to wipe the blood off of his face.

"It's alright, don't worry about it." He closed his eyes as she ran the handkerchief over his brow, then she dug into her pouch again pulling out a brown jar.

"What's that?" Naruto asked.

"It's a healing ointment." Hinata answered softly.

Opening it she took some of the white ointment and rubbed it over the gash. She watched in amazement as the gash slowly disappeared.

Naruto put his hand over his forehead and feeling that his wound is gone he grinned at her."Wow, that ointment works great! Thanks Hinata."

Kakashi looked at his student. _"It's not the ointment that's making your wounds heal at an unnatural rate…it's the chakra of the Nine-tailed Fox…"_

"Don't mention it. Here, take it."She handed him the jar.

"Thanks, but considering that I get injured a lot this is not going to last me that long."

"Well then I'll just make some more." She smiled at him.

He blinked at her. "You **made** this? Seriously, Hinata you're awesome!" He wrapped his arm around her shoulders making her blush _. "I-I'm..a-awesome…"_

But in the distance a pair of eyes were glaring at her not feeling like celebrating.

" _Silly Hinata…not a care in the world…"_

 **A/N:** I've decided to stick with the original match up because I love the fact that Naruto's revenging Hinata (his loved one ;-P) And since Sakura is not into Naruto (yet? maybe? we'll see…) Hinata has nothing to prove against her in my opinion (since some of you thought I should match up Sakura vs Hinata).


	15. The battle of the Hyugas

**A/N:** **CHAPTER 14 IS UP!** **IF YOU DIDN'T GET NOTIFIED GO READ IT.**

 _Hayate examined the groaning Kiba then turned to Naruto. "The winner is Naruto Uzumaki!"_

…

 _Naruto walked confidently up the stairs with his hands behind his head and a proud toothy grin on his face. When he got near Hinata she jumped into his embrace. "You were amazing!"_

…

 _But in the distance a pair of eyes were glaring at her not feeling like celebrating._

" _Silly Hinata…not a care in the world…"_

Sakura ran up to Kiba before the medics carried him out in the stretcher. "Are you okay?"

He smiled slightly. "I'll be alright. Give me an update about the exams when you visit me at the hospital later."

"Yeah." Sakura nodded as the medics carried him away.

"Okay, it's time for the next match." Hayate announced.

Naruto stopped his little celebration and along with everyone else focused his eyes on the board. And that's when the letters stopped shuffling…and to all of the jonins' horror…they stopped at:

 **Neji Hyuga vs Hinata Hyuga**

The matches were selected by random, but out of all the names it showed a truly shocking matchup.

Neji merely smirked and slowly and calmly made his way down the stairs.

Hinata's eyes widened in shock and her body started shaking with fear. She looked at the board again and blinked in disbelief. Seeing that she wasn't imagining things she glanced towards Neji for a fraction of a second before her gaze faced the floor and her shaky hands gripped the furry hem of her jacket. She was about to fight someone she spars against often at the Hyuga compound and whom she knows is far stronger than her. To make the matters worse, not only did Neji know how to exhaust her physically but he could also crush her emotionally as well, knowing exactly which hurtful words to use to break down her spirit.

She gulped in fear before feeling a pair of warm hands grip her shoulders. Looking up her eyes met Naruto's as he looked at her in determination.

"You can do this, okay? Don't worry, you got this, believe it. I know you'll do great. "

Her throat felt so dry. "Na…Naruto…I…"

"You've got this." He gripped her shoulders tighter. "Just don't let him get to you, ok?"

"Ok…" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When her eyes opened again there was no fear in them, just excitement and determination.

Naruto smiled at her. "Go kick his butt."

She nodded. Giving her a kiss on the cheek he let go of her shoulders and she quickly walked down the stairs to stand across from her cousin who glared at her. But his glare turned to surprise after he saw the look in her eyes. She wasn't as insecure as before, she was much more sure of herself.

"Lady Hinata…before we start I would like to give you a piece of advice…quit now, you know y-"

"Save the speech, brother." She interrupted him rudely but decisively surprising him even more. "Let's fight…Byakugan!" She got into her stance.

"What? Those two are brother and sister?" Naruto blinked in confusion. "She told me she only had a sister."

"No, they are first cousins." Kakashi explained.

Neji's look of surprise vanished and was replaced with anger as he got in the same stance activating his byakugan as well.

Naruto looked at them in confusion. "It's… the same stance…"

"Yes. The Hyuga clan has the most powerful taijutsu in the village. Hey are from the same clan so they will of course have the same stance as they were both thought the same thing growing up." Kakashi explained.

"Oh." Narurto's eyes turned back towards the two as they began exchanging blows. They both hit, punched and ducked in the similar way but there was no visible effect. The sharp punches could actually be heard through the air but neither of them made any kind of noise they just kept trying to touch each other. Neji aimed his hand at her head in incredible speed which she ducked just as fast by bending backwards and straightening her back again just as quickly showing just how nimble and graceful she was.

Naruto was confused again. "What are they doing? They aren't even hitting each other."

"The taijutsu of the Hyuga clan is special. With the power of the byakugan they are able to see the chakra coils flowing through the body and hit them precisely, for that they don't even need to touch each other, they can stop the chakra flow of the body part that they hit just by releasing a burst of chakra through their palms." Kakashi explained once again.

"Woah…that's amazing…" Naruto blinked looking at Hinata's fast moves. _"Awesome…"_

The two kept exchanging blows until Neji slammed his palm under her chin. The force of the blow sent her back pedaling a few feet before she stopped, barely managing to stay on her feet. Her eyes squeezed shut from the pain in her jaw, she started to cough and a few drops of blood leaked out of the sides of her mouth. Wiping them away with her hand she swallowed carefully and was met not only with a sharp pain in her jaw but also with the bitter metallic taste of blood.

She quickly got back in her stance and rushed towards him and they started invisibly hitting each other again. Neji looked at her in confusion between the punches she seemed to mainly aim at his shoulders. Feeling a numb sensation grow over his left arm he realized what she was doing and quickly pushed himself away from her.

Panting and shaking a bit, she looked at him with a pleased expression in her eyes.

His left arm relaxed against his side and he pulled up his sleeve to reveal red dots all over his shoulder.

He glared at her in anger. "Since when can you see the chakra points?!"

She smiled slightly. All that training she did paid off, her byakugan developed quite a bit. Not only can she see the chakra points but she can also see a lot further away.

"And since I am able to see them…I know that you can see them too…that's why I was holding back."

"How did you learn to be so cunning?"

"Well, I have got the Leaf's most unpredictable ninja as my teammate." She smiled glancing at Naruto who gave her a big grin.

"Heh, well I hope you did not also pick up his tendency to fail."

Hinata's expression became serious. "let's continue, brother."

After another dozen of swift blows Hinata almost got Neji again.

"Did she hit him?" Sakura's eyes widened.

"No way! She barely touched him!" Naruto griped the railing.

"Even so, she must have hurt him somewhat." Lee added.

Naruto turned to face him. "What do you mean?"

"That is what makes the Hyuga clan the most powerful taijutsu users." Gai continued. "Their taijutsu is not like the taijutsu Lee and I use. We concentrate on inflicting external damage while the Hyuga taijutsu attacks internal organs and the flow of chakra through the body."

"No matter how hard you train your internal organs won't get any stronger, even the most powerful shinobi is vulnerable to this type of taijutsu." Kakashi added.

Naruto turned back to Hinata in amazement. "Woah!"

But the amazement was short lived as after a few minutes Neji rolled up Hinata's sleeve showing that he'd been doing the same all along…hitting her chakra points leaving red dots all over her arm.

But Hinata wasn't going to quit, repeating her nindo in her head over and over as she exchanged blows with her opponent.

" _All these years I've been watching you Naruto…but now…finally… you're the one watching me…I cannot look bad in front of you…Naruto…watch me…"_

WHAM!

And Hinata flew a few feet before landing on her side with a short scream of pain. She panted and turned towards Neji.

"See? This is what separates the elite from the failures."Neji lowered the hand he used to strike Hinata. "You sealed your destiny the moment you decided to continue with this match, you know you cannot win."

Hinata just smirked at him.

He looked at her in confusion before a drop of blood dripped out of his nostril. "What?" He wiped it and looked at the blood on his fingers. "You…" He started to cough. _"How?!"_

"Yeah! She got 'im!" Naruto cheered.

"Impressive." Kakashi blinked.

Lee tightened his fists. "She actually managed to hit him…"

Kurenai looked in amazement. _"Hinata made some amazing progress from the last time I saw her. I hope her father changed his opinion about her from that time I came to his compound thinking that she would be on my team."_

But as Hinata got up on her feet the damage that Neji's blow had on her became apparent as she coughed out blood and fell to her knees again.

"Hinata!" Naruto gripped the jar in his hand.

"You better quit before it's too late."Neji warned her.

"I never…go back…on my word…"She slowly got back on her feet. "That's my nindo…my ninja way."

Sakura blinked. _"Where have I heard that before?"_ She looked at Naruto.

As if feeling her eyes on him, Naruto turned to Sakura. "Hm?"

"She's stronger than I thought she was." Sakura admitted.

"Hinata's really tough, you know." Naruto told her.

"I see." Sakura smiled.

"We all do." Kakashi added.

Naruto nodded in agreement.

Kurenai looked at Hinata's shaking form. "She's at her limit…one more blow and she's done."

Naruto's head snapped towards her."What?!"

"Neji blocked her chakra flow." Kakashi frowned. "She won't last much longer."

Naruto's neck slowly turned towards his teammate."Hinata…"

Then something in him burst. "Go Hinata! You can do it!"

" _Naruto…"_ Hinata looked up at him and then charged Neji again.

" _When I watch you…"_ They exchanged blows again. _"I feel full of courage… I feel that I can keep going…that I can succeed… that even I am worth something… "_

"HYA!" She was about to punch Neji again but he was quicker, punching her instead. She took a few steps away from him and grimaced in pain.

But that didn't stop her. She charged Neji again, both of them had their hand out to strike…but only one of them missed…

Everything seemed to hold still. It was like time stopped, there was no movement or sound in the room. Everyone's breathes caught in their throats…

…until Hinata collapsed to the ground in a dull thud… her byakugan deactivated by itself and she coughed out more blood before collapsing… her hand was still out…because it didn't manage to connect with Neji's stomach…but his managed to hit hers.

"You're finished." Neji deactivated his byakugan and began walking away from her a bit wobbly still feeling the blow she managed to inflict to him.

"No! Hinata!" Naruto's heart skipped a beat.

Hayate walked closer to Hinata. "Since she's not able to continue-"

"Don't stop the match!" Naruto yelled out.

"Naruto, she's unconscious!" Sakura's eyes widened.

But Naruto just smiled.

Everyone's eyes went towards Hinata and everyone gasped in shock…she was slowly getting up again.

Neji looked at her in disbelief. "Why won't you give up? You'll die! Just stop and end your suffering!"

"You're wrong, brother…" She panted. "The one who's really suffering... is you."

"What?"

"You are the one who's all torn up because of the fate of the main and side branches if the Hyuga clan."

Neji growled in anger and charged her.

Hayate ran towards them. "Neji no, the match is over!"

But just before he could strike her all the jonin blocked him from doing so.

Hinata felt her heart ache and started coughing before her legs gave out.

Naruto gasped and jumped over the railing and ran towards her catching her just before she hit the ground.

"Hinata!"

"Nar..u…to…I…"

"Shhh, it's ok. You did great, believe it."

"B-but I… lost…"

"You're a winner to me." He said softly and kissed her forehead."Relax now…"

She smiled and her eyes slowly closed and her breathing calmed.

"Is she going to be ok?" Naruto turned towards his sensei.

"She'll be fine, just take her to the hospital."

Naruto nodded and was about to pick her up but a voice stopped him.

"Hey, you…loser."

Naruto turned to Neji and frowned.

"I have two pieces of advice for you…Firstly, if you want to call yourself a ninja stop the stupid cheering, it's disgraceful…and second…once a failure always a failure."

"We'll just see about that." Naruto said angrily. "Because remember, I'm going to the finals…" He dipped his fingers in Hinata's blood and held his fist out towards Neji. "And when I get there…I vow to beat you."

"Hmph." And with that Neji walked away.

Naruto pulled out Hinata's handkerchief and wiped the blood off of his hand and then wiped the blood off of the sides of her mouth then stuffing if back into his pocket he picked up Hinata bridal style and started walking out of the arena.

* * *

Walking out of the arena he was met with medics who transported them to the hospital using a transportation jutsu Kakashi often used. After Hinata was in safe hands Naruto was told to go back to the arena but he refused wanting to stay by her side. Sitting in the waiting room Kakashi showed up in a puff of smoke.

"She's in surgery…" Naruto said grimly.

"You missed the two last matches."

"I don't care…"

"And also since you weren't there…the matchups for the finals were decided."

"And?"

"You're up against Neji."

Naruto gulped."Good."

"Go home, it's getting dark…you'll see her tomorrow."

"She's gonna be ok, right?"

"Yes, she's in good hands…go."

* * *

Getting back to his apartment it was weird being there without his roommate. All of a sudden it felt so lonely. After taking a shower he went to his bed. _"I guess I'll sleep here tonight."_ But plopping his head on the pillow he felt something hard underneath it. "Huh?" He stuck his hand under the pillow and pulled out a locked. "This is Hinata's…"

He opened the locked. Inside there were two pictures. One was a beautiful woman who looked like Hinata and the other one…

…was a picture of him…


	16. Love?

_Getting back home it was weird being there without his roommate. All of a sudden it felt so lonely. After taking a shower he went to his bed. "I guess I'll sleep here tonight." But plopping his head on the pillow he felt something hard underneath it. "Huh?" He stuck his hand under the pillow and pulled out a locked. "This is Hinata's…"_

 _He opened the locked. Inside there were two pictures. One was a beautiful woman who looked like Hinata and the other one…_

… _was a picture of him…_

Naruto stared at the locket in shock. But he wasn't shocked about his picture being in there as much as he was shocked about the actual picture. It was his ninja identification list picture that the old man made him retake after his face paint one wasn't good for his list.

But why did Hinata have it? How did she even get it? He'll ask her about later, when she comes back home…it does feel like home now, doesn't it?

His eyes examined the other picture. It was a woman in a purple kimono with long dark hair and fair complexion like Hinata's with a smile on her face. She had the same eyes like his roommate too so she must be her mom. Naruto remembered the time she told him about her mother, her death broke her heart so he didn't want to ask more about her so that she wouldn't get sad again. He also remembered the day Hinata's compound was destroyed, she had rushed into the ashes looking for the locket. He had noticed the relief on her face when she found it, her mom must have been a very precious person to her.

He put the locked back under the pillow and decided to go to sleep. The sooner he falls asleep the sooner he will wake up to go visit his roommate in the hospital.

* * *

Meanwhile at the hospital, Sasuke had just been released. He wouldn't have even been in the hospital if that sealing jutsu Kakashi used hadn't knocked him unconscious. Kakashi even came to tell him he was going to be released this morning and of course to check the seal. Sasuke had asked him about the preliminaries, it surprised him that he actually wasn't surprised that Naruto had won his match, but what did surprise him is who Hinata had to fight. He had heard rumors about Neji and it was obvious that he was much stronger than her.

Putting his headband on, he walked out of his hospital room and walked up to the main desk.

"Oh, you were just released, weren't you?" A nurse at the desk greeted him.

"Yeah." Sasuke answered. "What room is Hinata Hyuga in?"

"Right down this hall the third door to the left. But she hasn't woken up yet."

"Oh." Sasuke said and walked out of the hospital. While walking he was in deep thought. _"I've wasted enough time in this hospital…I have to go train if I don't want to have my chakra sucked out of me like that again. Hn. But I have to find Kakashi first so he can teach me that jutsu he promised when he came to my room this morning…"_

"… _The chidori…"_

* * *

Naruto walked down the street on the way to the hospital with two to go bowls of ramen, one for him and one for Hinata. He knew that hospital food sucked.

After walking into the hospital he walked up to the main desk."Um, good morning. I'm here to visit Hinata Hyuga please." He said politely.

The nurse at the desk looked at him. "Third door to the left, but she could be asleep still." She pointed down the hallway.

"Thank you."Naruto was about to walk away but stopped. "Hey um, what room is Sasuke Uchiha in?"

"He was released this morning. As a matter of fact you just missed him."

"Oh, thanks anyway."

He walked down the hall towards Hinata's room, he slowly opened the door trying to balance the ramen bowls in one hand then he quietly walked in closing the door behind him.

He looked at his sleeping roommate, she looked so calm. He put the two bowls on the bedside table and sat on the chair next to the bed and held her hand. Both of her arms were bandaged from the wrist up, and even after that fight her hands were still so soft.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when Hinata's fingers twitched slightly gripping his fingers. She made soft mewling sounds as her eyes fluttered open.

He smiled at her softly. "Hey there, sleeping beauty."

She blushed. "Naruto…" She slowly sat up and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand in a child like manner that Naruto found absolutely adorable.

"How are you feeling?" He let go of her hand and scooted the chair closer to her.

"Better…I guess…" She looked down at her bandaged hands and gripped the sheets slightly.

"Hm? Is something wrong?" He looked at her in concern.

"I'm s-sorry…"

"Sorry? What do you have to be sorry about? We talked about the 'apologizing for nothing' thing." He smiled slightly.

"I…lost I…"

"It doesn't matter, you were awesome!"

"Really?" She blinked in surprise.

"Yeah! But hey, why didn't you tell me about the Hyuga Clan taijutsu thing?"

"Huh? I…do not know what you mean…"

"When you were fighting Kakashi-sensei told me that the Hyuga taijutsu is the most powerful taijutsu form ever! You told me about the invisible hit thing and that you can shut off people's chakra but I didn't know you could mess up someone's guts with it."

"Oh…well…My father's and Neji's taijutsu is much more developed than mine, so I thought that mine would not have the same effect…" She looked down sadly but looked right back up when Naruto gently grabbed both of her hands into his.

"Are you kidding? You totally kicked Neji's ass, you were amazing! You shouldn't be afraid to brag about it a bit!" He grinned.

She blushed but her face paled when a low growl came from her stomach and Naruto burst out laughing.

"You haven't eaten since the exams, have you?"

She shook her head as the color came back to her face.

Naruto took one of the bowls of to go ramen and put it in her lap. "Here you go." He handed her a pair of chopsticks. "Oh! And Ayame says she hopes you get better soon."

"Thank you, Naruto." She smiled.

"No problem. Let's dig in!"

* * *

"Woof! Woof!"

"I know Akamaru, I'm hungry too." Kiba rubbed his growling stomach.

"Well, I think that would be it for today."Kurenai smiled at her exhausted students. "You are improving every single day, good job."

"Yeah! And next time I face Naruto he'll know not to mess with us!"

"Woof! Woof!"

Team 8 recovered from the chunin exams and while Shino is preparing for the final round of the exams, Kiba and Sakura are training with Kurenai.

"Let's go chow down some ribs Akamaru. See ya!" Kiba waved goodbye to his sensei and teammate.

"How about we girls go have lunch together?" Kurenai asked Sakura.

Sakura smiled. "I'd like that."

As they walked away from the training grounds the two were rather silent as Sakura was lost in thought. There was only one thing on her mind…or rather one person. Naruto has changed so much since the academy and he got a lot stronger, and it seems that his chances in love are a lot better than hers. Seeing him with Hinata showed her a different side of him that she didn't even know he had…but she could swear that she saw a glimpse of that gentle and affectionate side of him once…but when? Wait…now she remembered…it was the very first time they met…

 **Flashback:**

It was the very first day of the academy and the students who were going to be her classmates slowly entered the classroom and started chatting and introducing themselves. She didn't know anyone, she saw them around the village but never spoke to them. The only person she knew was sitting next to her, it was her best friend Ino whose ribbon was now proudly holding up her hair off of her face showing off her high forehead.

"Oh! There's Raiku. I'll go invite her to sit with us."Ino said getting up and running towards the door.

Sitting all alone made Sakura feel a little nervous. Then she felt somebody walk up to her. "Is this seat taken?"

She turned to her right so see a grinning blonde boy. _"Wow, she's really pretty!"_ He thought.

"Umm…no." She answered shyly.

The boy plopped into the seat next to her. "I'm Naruto, what's your name?"

"Sakura." She answered quietly.

"Sakura huh? Like a cherry blossom? That's a pretty name!"

Sakura blushed a bit. "Uh…yeah…thanks."

"Hey, you. What do you think you're doing? That seat is taken." Ino's mean voice was heard above them.

They turned around to see her and Raiku frowning. "Why are you talking to him Sakura?"

Sakura looked at them in confusion. She has never seen Ino this angry before.

"You don't want to be in his loser squad, do you?" Raiku looked at her in annoyance and a tinge of disgust.

"No, he came up to me. I didn't do anything." Sakura defended herself turning away.

"Oh." Naruto choked out in sadness and got up and walked away. _"I thought that she… of course not…"_

Sakura looked at him walking away.

"Don't feel bad for him, Sakura." Ino took a seat next to her again while Raiku took the seat where Naruto sat a moment ago. "Everyone treats him like that. He's a total loser, and if you don't want to become a loser and stay one of us you shouldn't talk to him."

"Oh." Sakura said sadly before nodding earning a smile from Ino who quickly changed the subject and started talking about a new dress she had bought.

Sakura glanced at Naruto who was now sitting in the back row slumped over the table looking miserable.

She blinked in confusion remembering Ino's harsh words. _"But he was nice to me…"_

 **End of flashback.**

"Are you alright, Sakura?" Kurenai's concerned voice brought her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, I'm fine. So where are we going for lunch?" She smiled at her sensei.

* * *

"Y-you did what?" Hinata looked at Naruto in shock.

"Yeah, I vowed to beat Neji and damn right I will!"

"With…m-my blood?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Cuz I'm doing it for you."

Her eyes were wide and teary and her cheeks flushed as her hands gripped the empty ramen bowl.

"He can't get away unpunished with what he did to you. I have to sock him at least once. You did give him a few good bruises but he deserves some more. Believe it."

"I'm sorry I c-couldn't get close enough to him…" She lowered her head in disappointment.

"No! I didn't mean it like that!" He almost jumped off of the bed. Taking her bowl and putting it on the table beside him, he sat back next to her and intertwined his fingers with hers once again.

She looked up slowly and blushed when he lowered his head onto hers gently rubbing his forehead against hers. Her heart sped up ten folds. He was so close she could feel his warm breath on her face which was making her flush even more.

"When I was watching you fight…every time he hit you…every time he made you bleed…every time he hurt you…it hurt me even more…" He almost whispered with his eyes closed, his forehead still on hers. "It was hard to watch cuz I usually try my best to not let you get hurt, the thought of not being able to stop him from hurting you…not being able to protect you, even though I know you are incredibly strong and that you can take care of yourself."

"You know…" She whispered. "You have become rather overprotective towards me."

He lifted his head but just enough to look directly into her silver orbs and gave her a small smile. "I protect everything I love."

Her heart stopped.

But just for a bit before it continued racing faster than it ever did before.

They were lost in each other's eyes. He moved away a bit to see her face which was getting redder by the second.

"L-l-l-l-love?" She barely managed to choke out that word…THAT word…one of those three words that flashed in front of her eyes every time she saw him…every time he smiled at her. The three words she just could never say to him…the words that were permanently in her heart but never made it out of her lips.

She couldn't even blink but even though her eyes were getting sore from not blinking she could clearly see Naruto's eyes closing and his face slowly moving closer and closer and closer...

…Until she finally felt his lips gently touch hers…


	17. Yes, love

" _You know…" She whispered. "You have become rather overprotective towards me."_

 _He lifted his head but just enough to look directly into her silver orbs. "I protect everything I love."_

 _Her heart stopped._

 _But just for a bit before it continued racing faster than a waterfall._

 _They were lost in each other's eyes. He moved away a bit to see her face which was getting redder by the second._

" _L-l-l-l-love?" She barely managed to choke out that word…THAT word…one of those three words that flashed in front of her eyes every time she saw him…every time he smiled at her. The three words she just could never say to him…the words that were permanently in her heart but never made it out of her lips._

 _She couldn't even blink but even though her eyes were getting sore from not blinking she could clearly see Naruto's eyes closing and his face slowly moving closer and closer and closer..._

… _Until she finally felt his lips gently touch hers…_

…but just for a second as their heart melting moment was interrupted when two nurses burst through the door. Their faces displayed shock and it only increased when they saw Naruto looking at them in surprise and confusion.

"We…are you alright? Your heart monitor was going crazy!" One of the nurses finally spat out looking at the now frozen Hinata in concern.

Hinata's neck turned towards the nurses like a rusty gear and her mouth opened and closed a couple of times but nothing came out.

As she didn't respond and her heartbeat slowed down a bit Naruto said: "Yeah, she's ok, no need to worry. Believe it."

"Are you sure? She doesn't look well." The other nurse asked.

"I-I-I-I am f-fine…" Hinata finally choked out swallowing the lump in her throat.

"Well, we need to check your injuries anyway." The nurse slightly glared at Naruto. _"What did he do to her?"_ "I'm sorry, but the visiting hours are over."

Naruto raised an eyebrow but shrugged and turned to his shy teammate. "Well, I guess I gotta go." He pecked her on the cheek gently which actually calmed her heartbeat then he got up and took the empty ramen bowls.

"I'll see you later, ok?" He smiled at her. She slightly smiled back and nodded and with that he walked out and closed the door behind him.

The two nurses exchanged glares before smiling as they turned back to their patient.

After checking everything and making sure she was healing properly they left the room leaving the still shocked Hinata alone. She was still in pure bliss from what happened just minutes before…

Her and the love of her life kissed… not on the cheek, or forehead…but on the **lips** … Naruto actually KISSED HER. It did last just for a second but it finally happened! And it felt absolutely incredible! She had dreamt that Naruto would be the one to steal her first kiss and one of her biggest dreams just came true!

She slowly laid back down gripping her cover and closing her eyes as her cheeks turned rosy. She let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding and a tear escaped her eye.

" _He loves me…he loves me…_ _ **he loves me**_ _…_ _ **he loves…ME**_ _...not Sakura…me…"_

The tear became a thick stream that soaked her pillow when she rolled over and buried her face in the pillow sobbing uncontrollably… but out of happiness as the realization stuck her.

" _He's in love with me…"_

* * *

Meanwhile, on the other side of the village, Naruto lay in his bed with his hands over his flushed face. _"What was I thinking kissing her like that?! Hinata doesn't…"_ His thoughts stopped there as he gathered up the facts. She was the only girl that kissed him and the only girl who would let **him** kiss **her.** He remembered that one time back at the academy when he tried giving Sakura a kiss on Valentine's day and got his butt kicked. But Hinata would never punch him for it…in fact she seemed to like it. And it would explain why she had his picture in her precious locket. _"Does she…"_

Oh…

"Well I guess we won't have to pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend in front of Konohamaru and the others anymore…"

* * *

"You requested my presence, Lord Hokage?"Kakashi asked as he stepped into Sarutobi's office, but there was someone else there and to his surprise it was someone whom he hasn't seen in a while. "Lord Jiraiya?"

"Long time no see, Kakashi." Jiraiya smiled at him.

"Not to be rude but what are you doing here?"

"I have a mission for those brats of yours, but it can wait after the chunin exams. But the reason I am here now is because I need to get to know one of them before that."

Kakashi merely looked at him. "Naruto…"

* * *

"AAAAH-CHOOO!" Naruto wiped his nose on his sleeve and continued eating his ramen.

Teuchi chuckled. "You know, they say that when you sneeze it means someone's talking about you."

"You believe that?" Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Anyway, so she's set to leave the hospital in two days?"

"Yeah, she said that she's recovering well. I'm glad Hinata told me that before the nurses told me to leave."

"Oh boy."Ayame shook her head. "So, you seem to get rather excited when you talk about her, hmm?" She teased her favorite customer.

Naruto blushed and scratched his cheek. "I…umm…well…"

"Oh? Something you want to tell me?"

"Well…umm…I guess we…sort of…kind of…kissed…" He blushed even more.

Teuchi's head whipped towards him and his eyes widened in surprise. "Well, well…"

"Eeep!"Ayame ran over to him and hugged him. "I'm so happy for you!" She squealed. Then she turned to her father. "Looks like I won't be washing the dishes for the next month." Teuchi sighed.

"You…made a bet on us?" Naruto scratched his head.

"You two are so cute together, it was bound to happen!"

"Well, it's not official yet…"

"But you like her, don't you?" Ayame asked sweetly.

"Yeah." Naruto blushed. "Do you think she likes me too?" It was almost a whisper but Ayame was quick to respond.

"Of course she does! Ooh, this is so exciting! You two are so different but perfect for each other!"

"Ha-hah! My boy's got a girlfriend! Today's bowls are on the house!" Teuchi laughed proudly.

Naruto grinned. "Are you serious?! This is the best day ever!"

Teuchi laughed again.

Naruto's grin was replaced with a soft smile and his heart rate increased as he thought about his favorite girl. _"It really is the best day ever."_

* * *

The next day Naruto walked down the street happily with a box of cinnamon buns. He was headed to the hospital to visit Hinata so he wanted to surprise her. _"Hmm, should I get her flowers too? Yeah, but those pretty arrangements at Ino's are expensive…Ah! I know!"_

He jumped over the roofs until he got to an empty field in the village. There was a waterfall there but there were also lots of flowers. He smiled ear to ear when he saw all the colorful flowers, putting down the box of cinnamon rolls on a nearby rock he proceeded to pick them and arrange them in a bouquet. After tying the large bouquet with some long leaves he smiled at his work and went to pick up the box…but it was no longer there.

"Huh?" He blinked in shock before his face turned into anger. He put the bouquet down where the box was and started to look for it. Taking a few steps into the woods he heard messy chewing sounds. Climbing onto a larger rock he looked behind it only to see a large man with long white hair sitting there with his legs crossed, eating his cinnamon buns. "What the shit do you think you're doing?!" He yelled out in rage causing the man to jump.

"You talking to me, brat?" The man appeared to be ignorant.

"Yeah I'm talking to you! How dare you steal my food?!"

"Oh, were these yours?"

"Yeah! They…were?" Naruto looked at the box…which was now completely empty.

He looked at the man with pure rage. " **You…** " A menacing growl rumbled from his chest and the air around them suddenly grew cold.

"Well maybe you shouldn't leave your food wherever." The man tried not to let his shivers show as he knew where the growl was coming from.

" _ **Well maybe…YOU should eat food that you found…WHEREVER!**_ " The growl became deeper as Naruto charged the man but he dodged at an incredible speed and jumped over the trees laughing. "Face it kid, you could never catch me!" He disappeared into the trees.

Naruto was about to run after him but he was snapped out of it as he felt pain on the back of his head and a piece of a branch falling to the ground behind him.

Turning around he saw three girls in bathing suits covering themselves with towels.

"Wait, you're not the old coot." The girl that threw the branch at him spoke.

Naruto raised his brows."The old guy with white hair?" The girls nodded. "Was he spying on you?" They nodded again.

"You know what. I'll take care of the bastard!" He shouted angrily grabbing the bouquet and storming out of the woods. "What is wrong with that psycho?!"

* * *

On the other side of the village Sarutobi was in his office talking to his guest when someone stormed through the door.

"Old man I need-" Naruto stopped mid sentence. His gaze went from the surprised Hokage to the man standing next to him.

"YOU?!" He dropped the bouquet. Red with anger he turned to the Hokage. "Naruto, what is this all abo-"

"He's the one I came here for!" Naruto pointed towards the man.

Sarutobi looked at his guest. "I thought you said you didn't meet him yet, Jiraiya."

"Oh, we've met alright! You need to keep this old fart on a leash!"

Sarutobi put his pipe down and blinked in shock. "Is there something you need to tell me, Jiraiya?"

Jiraiya paled in embarrassment. "Well I…heh…"

"This old bastard was spying on girls who were bathing!"

"What?!" The Hokage growled.

"And that's not all! He stole the cinnamon buns I got for Hinata and ate them all like a jerk!"

"Jiraiya! Explain yourself at once!"

Jiraiya started to sweat. "You see…I was…just… doing some… research for my book!" He said pulling out an orange book out of his pocket. "This edition is my best seller so I wasn't doing anything wrong."

Naruto looked in shock at the orange book in his hand. "You're the one who wrote the porn Kakashi-sensei is always reading?!"

"Excuse me?!" Hiruzen lifted his hat to make sure that Jiraiya saw the rage on his face. "Naruto, could you please leave us alone now."

"Sure thing, but not before I get money for the buns he ate!" Jiraiya sighed and threw a couple of bills at him. Naruto caught them. "Sock him good Old Man! I'm going to visit Hinata at the hospital now!" Grabbing the bouquet again he headed towards the door.

"And who is this Hinata you are talking about?"Jiraiya asked, his voice still a bit shaky.

Naruto looked at him. "My girlfriend!" And slammed the door shut.

Hiruzen looked at the door in shock. "His girlfriend?"

"Isn't he a little too young for a girlfriend?"

"Don't think we're changing the subject Jiraiya!"

* * *

Hinata slowly bit into her bun wide eyed as Naruto continued his story. "And now Old Man is talking to him. I hope he teaches him a lesson!" He bit into his own bun.

"Naruto…do you know who Lord Jiraiya is?"

"What do you mean 'Lord'?" He swallowed his bite.

"He's one on the three legendary Sanin."

"What? You're joking? That old perv?! Gah!" He fell off his chair.

Hinata giggled. "Come sit on the bed…next to me." She blushed.

Naruto smiled and sat next to her and winked.

It had all worked out. When he walked into her room she got excited about the flowers and the cinnamon buns, but them an awkward silence prevailed as the two didn't know what to say to each other. Naruto broke the silence by asking her to go out with him after she leaves the hospital. Then a bit of happy tears later the silence was replaces with Naruto's story about the pervert who stole her cinnamon rolls.

"You know…I've got to make this date special. Cuz if you look at it, we've kind of went on a lot of dates already. It's just that we didn't look at them as dates."

"You do not have to do anything special for me, Naruto. Just being with you is enough." She twiddled her fingers.

"But…"

"Really, you don't…"

"Ok, but we're going wherever you like then." He smiled at her.

She nodded. "So…are you training for the exams?" She asked timidly.

"Yep. Kakashi-sensei got me this trainer, he seemed like a loser at first but he's not that bad. And ironically he seems to be a pervert too…" He made a face that made Hinata laugh.

"Shall we change the subject to something more…umm…cheerful?" She suggested.

Naruto thought for a minute but nothing came to mind. Until he looked at the cinnamon buns left in the box. He smiled mischievously and took a piece, putting half of it in his mouth. And then he turned to her with a grin.

"Bite."

"Naruto!"


	18. Feelings

It's been three days since Hinata was finally released from the hospital, three days since she could finally sleep in Naruto's comfortable bed, and…three days since she finally got the heart of the love of her life.

Her relationship with the boisterous blonde was nothing like she imagined it would be…it was even better.

She knew practically everything about her crush but she didn't know that he could be so romantic and loving and gentle. Naruto is definitely not someone you would describe as gentle. He was blunt, determined and direct, he doesn't hold anything back. And that had shown on the third day when the Hokage requested Naruto to come to his office. Seeing the pervy thief there and finding out that he was unharmed after he left them alone in the office was enough to set him off, but finding out that the old man wanted the pervy old man to train him after he had complained about Ebisu made it even worse. Plus, Ebisu had his hands full with his grandson. However, his mood switched in an instant after Jiraiya had promised to teach him a killer new jutsu.

"Really? Is it going to be something really powerful and destructive?" He punched the air in excitement.

Jiraiya chuckled. "Well, I guess you will have to find out, and I think it's best that we start right away as I've heard that you made it to the final rounds in the chunin exams."

"Of course I made it! Who do you think you're talking to?" Naruto puffed out his chest proudly. "Ok, I'll go let Hinata know that I'll be busy today and then we'll meet at the…" He looked at Jiraiya dragging out the last word.

"The hot springs." Jiraiya finished.

"The hot springs?" Naruto's chest deflated as he looked at him quizzically.

"Yes, but we aren't going there for a bath or for the other reason you both probably have in your head."

Hiruzen exhaled the puff of smoke he was holding in.

"Alright then, see ya later at the hot springs, I guess." Naruto was about to leave but Hiruzen's voice stopped him.

"And how is Hinata?" He smiled widely seeing a slight blush on his favorite genin's cheeks.

"She's never better. Believe it." He said calmly.

"I'm glad." The Hokage nodded and with that Naruto dashed out the door.

* * *

Meanwhile, Hinata was grocery shopping for a special dinner for her and Naruto. "Hm…tomato sauce or sweet chili sauce?" She quietly mumbled to herself looking at the sauces on the shelf.

"I'd choose the sweet chili one."

"Hm?" Hinata turned around to face Kurenai who also had a half full basket in her hand. "Oh! Kurenai-sensei!" She greeted cheerfully.

"Hello, making dinner for…the special someone?" Kurenai smiled raising an eyebrow making Hinata blush.

"W-well…yes. I w-want to surprise him…again…" She looked at her feet while Kurenai chuckled.

"So, he's not making you cook for him?"

"No! Of course not." Hinata answered quickly.

Kurenai was a bit surprised at her slight outburst. "Well, well…looks like Naruto is rubbing off on you a bit, hm?"

" That…is what Hanabi told me when I went to visit her today. Have I really changed?"

"Yes, you have. Now tell me, what kind of dish requires this kind of sauce?" Kurenai asked stepping towards the shelf and picking out a jar of pickled radishes.

"It's a dish that my mother used to make. I always watched her make it when I was little. Oddly I remember every detail so I'm trying to make it myself. But they don't sell the sauce that she used anymore so I'm trying to find a replacement for it."

"Ah, I see. That's very special. Trying to get Naruto's heart through his stomach?" She chuckled again.

"Umm…actually…" She fidgeted with her fingers, her cheeks turning rosy again.

Kurenai looked at her wide-eyed. "Wait, you two are…"

Hinata nodded slowly.

"Hinata, that's great! I'm so happy for you two." She ruffled her hair gently.

"Thank you."

"So how has it been between you two?"

"It is…like a dream…" Her hands gripped the handles of the basket.

Kurenai smiled widely. This was such great news. She knew how unhappy the former heiress has been. Her life pretty much went downhill after her mother passed. So to see her finally happy filled her with relief.

"So how is the restoration of your compound going? I walked passed it the other day. Seems that they have already put up the stone structure."

"Yes, the base of the walls is almost complete and now they are getting started on the roof."

"Excellent news. I have to finish my shopping then turn in for a mission with my team, so we will have to finish this conversation some other time." She said waving goodbye which Hinata returned.

"Yes, have a great day, sensei."

"Likewise."

Hinata then turned back to the shelf. "So sweet chili it is."

* * *

And the sweet chili was obviously a good choice. Hinata tried the almost finished dish and was delighted to see that it tasted almost the same as the one her mother used to make. _"I hope Naruto will like it too."_

Speaking of Naruto…the sun is going down and he still hasn't returned from his training session with the Toad Sage. Hinata didn't know if she should worry or not. He was with a sanin after all. He wouldn't let anything bad happen to him, right? As if on cue she heard the door slowly open. She almost dropped the spoon she had in her hand as she rushed towards the door. She almost gasped seeing a ruffed up and partly wet Naruto struggling to take of his sandals. As he straightened up she jumped over to embrace him but he quickly put his hands in front of her to stop her. She looked at him in surprise.

"Don't hug me, I stink." He smiled.

She smiled but it quickly disappeared. "Are you hurt?"

"No, just exhausted." He walked in unzipping his jacket and peeling the damp piece of clothing off of him. The black shirt that he wore underneath was also damp causing it to cling to every muscle on his torso.

Hinata blinked rapidly to pull herself together. "Why a-are you w-wet?"

"I passed out so Pervy Sage splashed me with a bucket of water to wake me up." Naruto grumbled in annoyance.

"Oh, dear." Hinata put her hand over her mouth to hide her smile. "You passed out?"

"I'll tell you about it later, now I gotta go take a shower so I can finally give you a hug. I missed you."

She blushed. "I missed you too."

He winked and disappeared into the bathroom.

Hinata hurried to set the table and when Naruto got out from his shower running his fingers through his wet hair, he sat down and motioned for her to sit in his lap. She blushed heavily but complied.

A bit of gentle kissing later, she was still in his lap as she feed him a spoonful of cooked rice with the sauce.

"Mmmm…amazingly delicious as always. How do you do it?" He teased.

"Well, when you put your heart into it..." She teased back making him grin.

"So, how did your training go?"

"Pervy Sage took me to the hot springs and told me to walk on the scorching hot water. Thanks to you helping me with my chakra control I didn't fall in. I could have turned into a boiled clown fish…"

She laughed. "Oh, Naruto."

"Yeah, but I guess that's why he did it. But then he had me sign this contract with my blood."

"A summoning contract? He's teaching you a summoning jutsu?" She blinked.

"Yeah, that one. I'm gonna be able to summon a giant toad whenever I need it, believe it!"

"Oh! So how is that going?"

Naruto paled a bit but then blushed. "Well…uhh…not so good… I can't summon anything bigger than a tadpole… He wants me to do it with the fox's chakra but I don't know how to get it to come out."

"Maybe…you should try wasting your normal chakra first, the fox's chakra will then be all you have left."

"Yeah, that'll work! Man, you're so smart!" He smiled at her and she blushed heavily.

"Now, let's finish this food and go to bed!" He took another big bite.

After they were both full and the table was clean they kept going back and forth about who is going to do the dishes. Naruto insisted on doing it but Hinata claimed that he's too tired. Eventually Naruto gave in and let her do it. He walked towards the bedroom with a pout.

"I'm waiting for you in bed…my little cuddle fish." He stuck his tongue out playfully.

Hinata burst out laughing. "You're so silly."

"That's why you like me." He teased again.

…

"N-no…"

He turned towards her in shock. "H-huh?"

"T-that's why…I love you…" She gulped. She had said it. She didn't stutter or faint. She just said it. She just finally said it…

Naruto stood frozen in front of the bedroom door. No one has said that to him before. He knew Iruka loves him, and the Old Man and Ayame and Teuchi too, but they have never said it. He felt a warm sensation spread out of his stomach streaming through his whole body, most of the warmth was concentrating around his heart. His jaw finally unfroze and he muttered out: "What?"

Hinata's hands unfroze and she wiped the soap suds off of them and turned to face him. But she didn't notice that he moved from his spot in front of the door so as soon as she turned around he cupped her cheeks with his hands and pressed his lips onto hers. She squealed into his lips in surprise and her eyes widened as he swiftly moved his hands of off her face and gripped her hips lifting her up on the counter. He wrapped his hands around her waist and she wrapped hers around his neck detangling his almost dry golden locks. The moment could have lasted forever but the need for air struck both of them so they parted breathing heavily.

After he caught his breath again Naruto pressed his warm cheek against her cool neck and whispered: "I love… you too…"

A tear escaped her eye and her still heavy breathing intensified. "Naruto?" She panted.

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm g-going to faint…" She held onto him.

He chuckled. "I guess It's bed time then."

* * *

It was a busy day in the streets of Konoha. The final round of the chunin exams was coming, which is considered to be a huge event and many people and wealthy guests will be coming to the village so experience fights of the best of the best so merchants and stores made sure to be stacked and polished in case some of those wealthy people want to splash the cash somewhat.

The Yamanaka flower shop was just as busy, especially since Ino had some free time now to run the shop by herself while her mom did housework and things she didn't have time for before.

While it was boring sitting at the counter all day sometimes the people who walked into the shop made it a bit livelier…like who walked in now.

"Hey, Ino." Sakura greeted.

Ino looked up from some roses she was trimming. "Oh, hey Sakura. What brings you here?" Ino greeted, dropping the mean nickname just like Sakura had.

"My dad wants some roses for my mom for their anniversary. He's out getting her a gift so he asked me to get the roses. Plus, I wanted to say hello." Ever since her uncomfortable interaction with Naruto, Sakura has been trying to become a nicer person and rebuilding her friendship with Ino was the first step. And the first step is usually the hardest as the two still argue about Sasuke from time to time.

"Coming right up." Ino smiled picking up some roses and starting to wrap them in decorative paper.

"So…has anything interesting happened here these days?" Sakura asked trying to start up a conversation.

Ino left the roses for a moment to look at Sakura. "Actually there was. Naruto came in like five times last week getting different flowers each time. My guess is that they were for Hinata." She winked with a sly smile.

"I bet."Sakura smiled then she sighed. "Well, I know she likes him but I honestly never thought that Naruto would fall for her. I mean, I'm glad he did but those two are so…different from each other. Do you think it will work out?"

"If the current status of their relationship is anything to go by, I'd say that it could work out. I'm still surprised that **he** got a girl before Sasuke or any other guy from our class at that matter. And Hinata is so quiet…for her to get a guy before any of us…"She trailed of getting back to the roses.

"It's meant to be, I guess…" Sakura muttered.

"Yeah…" Ino sighed. "Considering how much he liked you, it's hard to believe her got over you so quickly."

Sakura's head snapped towards her and she opened her mouth to fire back at Ino but what she wanted to say died in her throat as she quickly shut her mouth. "That's not…he…" She turned away.

"Aren't…you glad that he finally left you alone?" Ino asked.

"I…don't know…it feel kinda strange because I'm so used to wanting to punch him every time I see him."

Ino was about to giggle at that but her eyes widened. "Well don't punch him now, he'll fall into my petunias."

"Huh?" Sakura was confused…until Ino pointed at the door through which Naruto was walking into the shop.

"Oh, hey Sakura, sup?" He smiled at her.

"Hi Naruto, nothing…much..." She replied somewhat lamely as her mouth dried. She has never seen Naruto wear an outfit without any orange in it. He was wearing a black sleeveless shirt and gray shorts. He had a grocery bag in his hand. It was for a romantic meal judging by the lavender scented candle peeking through it…and by the fact that he came into a flower shop.

"What will it be today?" Ino looked up at him.

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. When he raised up his arm Sakura could tell he's been training his butt off…and judging by his butt she could tell that Hinata was a pretty good cook.

Taking a bouquet of white lillies he had purchased he waved goodbye and left.

"Wow." Ino commented.

Sakura nodded in agreement.

"Well, here are your roses." She handed Sakura the rose arrangement.

"They are beautiful! Thanks Ino." Sakura marveled her friend's handy work.

* * *

And back at his apartment, Naruto marveled the display of food, candles and flowers on the table. "Hopefully she likes it!" He grinned. It was about time he tried to cook and do something for his roommate, especially after what had happened last night.

" _I love you…"_

She went to the Hyuga compound to check on things and he took the opportunity to do something special for her.

Then he heard the door open. He turned towards it and Hinata walked in with a grim expression on her face. Seeing the things on the table and a smiling Naruto made her eyes widen but her expression became even more grim.

Naruto's smile dropped. "What's wrong? I made something for you, you don't like it?"

"Oh, Naruto…I… I don't know what to say…" It was barely a whisper.

"You don't have to say anything, ya know."

Her face didn't change.

"Are you ok?" His concern was growing.

"The compound will be finished soon…I will have to leave then…" The tears came. "I d-do not w-want to l-leave…"

He quickly embraced her. "Is that what you're upset about? You know you can sleepover any time you want."

"I know but…I like it here…a lot…with you…" She sniffed.

He faced her and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "You know I'll always be with you, same bed or not, I'm here for you."

She nodded and finally smiled. "There's that beautiful smile!" He teased.

"Come, the food will get cold." He led her to the table and pulled her chair for her.

"What is this for?" She looked at the beautifully made table.

"Just because." He winked.

As they ate Naruto was glad that the food actually did turn out good and Hinata liked it.

"So…will you be training with Lord Jiraiya today too?"

"Yeah."

"Could I come along…and watch you? I just want to spend as much time with you as I can." She blushed.

"Sure. Maybe you could even help me master this summoning thing so I can get to the other jutsu Pervy Sage wants to the teach me."

"Other jutsu? What is it?"

"I don't know what it is exactly but Pervy Sage called it uhh…what was it… oh, yeah…

…the Rasengan!"


	19. Preparations

The exterior of the Hyuga compound is almost finished, but while everyone else is glad that things will be returning back to normal soon, Hinata doesn't like the idea of not living with Naruto anymore and returning to the place of anger and disappointment. Plus, there is always a risk that something like this could happen again. Hiashi brought some new rules regarding the items that come and go in and out of the compound to make sure something like this doesn't happen again. However, he was really displeased that the investigation wasn't going anywhere. They have still not determined who was responsible for the attack and there were no clues to help get to the bottom of this crime. His daughters and everyone else in the compound are in danger of the person who did this attempting to do this again in the hopes of the second attempt being successful. If that happens, the second attack might cause even more damage and even more rumors and fear around the village.

Lord Hokage dispatched his best ANBU, investigators and interrogators to see what they can do and how they can help bring closure to this case. However, there was not much progress.

Hinata sighed standing inside the newly built compound in the area that was going to be her room, Naruto was standing beside her holding her hand. He saw the sadness on her face but he couldn't help but smile thinking about what happened a few moments before. Hinata had gathered all her courage and asked her father if he would allow her to move in with him. Of course, her father very clearly and loudly said no.

"Should we get out of here? We need to go meet Pervy Sage." He said quietly.

Hinata nodded and sighed again.

* * *

A few minutes later they were at the river where they were supposed to meet and where the two had previously trained. Jiraiya was already there sitting under an umbrella and cooling himself with a fan, an unopened bottle of sake lay next to him as he scribbled something onto a piece of paper, one of many laying all around his crossed feet.

Looking up he saw his student. "Ah, there you are. Hm?" His gaze went to Hinata. "Is that your girlfriend, brat?"

"Yeah, Pervy Sage. She wanted to come along." Naruto answered walking up to him.

Hinata bowed. "It is nice to meet you, Lord Jiraiya."

"Oh ho, what a polite young lady." He gave Naruto a face. "Unlike you."

"Alright, alright, let's just get started already." Naruto replied annoyed.

"Go try to summon a frog again and the young miss can help you see what you are doing wrong." Jiraiya waved his pen at him. He knew about her bloodline of course.

"Aren't you supposed to train me?" Naruto crossed his arms.

"You already know that there is nothing more I can do, your incompetence is your own fault."

"Fine…hey, Hinata? Should we try the idea we talked about?" She nodded. "Ok, but how do I drain all of my chakra?"He rubbed his chin in thought.

"Perhaps you should make a lot of clones and have them spar each other until they all disperse?"

"What are you two talking about?" Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

"Hinata said that I should try wasting all of my normal chakra first, and then the fox's chakra will be all I that I'll have left. You said that I need to try to get it out, right?"

Jiraiya looked at Hinata with a serious expression. "You know?"

She nodded. "Yes, he told me."

"Naruto willingly told you about it, by himself?"

She nodded again. "Yes, we have not broken any law."

"Good. Glad to hear it." He smiled. "Now go and do your little plan, I've got my research to sort out."

Naruto rolled his eyes and motioned Hinata to sit down while he made a bunch of clones and started the brawl.

An hour and thousands of clones later, an exhausted Naruto gave his last clone a final punch. Even though the punch was weaker that the previous ones the clone still flew a few feet away landing right in Jiraiya's lap knocking him over along with his umbrella which was now on top of him.

Naruto grinned weakly as sweat trickled down his face but his grin widened after he saw Hinata trying to suppress a laugh looking at the grumbling Jiraiya who was trying to fix the fallen umbrella.

"Ok." Naruto took a deep breath and made a hand seal. He held it until he could feel tinges of strength appearing in his body. Hinata activated her byakugan and watched in amazement as a new red chakra surged from his abdomen. He bit his finger doing a few more hands signs and roared. "Summoning jutsu!" As soon as his hand hit the ground the clearing filled with smoke. Jiraiya waited in curiosity until he heard a menacing voice ring through the clearing.

"Jiraiya, where the hell are you?!"

Jiraiya's body tensed as he recognized the voice. "Oh, you idiot… out of all the toads you had to summon **him**?!"

The smoke finally cleared revealing a giant toad sitting in the middle of the now destroyed clearing with a pipe in his mouth and an angry look on his face. Naruto and Hinata were on top of his head and jiraiya was on the ground.

Hinata's jaw dropped. _"He did it! Yes!"_

Naruto looked around in confusion but then he took a few steps forward and realizing where he was he yelled happily. "Alright! I did it, I did it! I'm the best! Woohoo!"

"What are you doing up there, pipsqueak? How dare you?" The toad asked in anger.

"How I dare? How dare you?! I'm the one who summoned you so I'm your boss now, believe it!" Naruto crossed his arms proudly.

"You are the boss of me? I AM THE BOSS OF YOU!" He yelled jumping up causing the two to lose their balance on top of him. Hinata squealed in surprise and Naruto put his arm around her while using his other arm to hold on to the toad's vest. "Hold on to me, ok?" She nodded wrapping her arms around him. The toad jumped around a few more times before stopping as he spotted Jiraiya.

"Why the hell did you summon me for no reason? I don't see anyone to battle around here, do you?!"

Jiraiya chuckled weakly. "I didn't summon you, Gamabunta…Naruto did." Jiraiya answered emphasizing Naruto's name.

"Huuuh? Naruto… Naruto Uzumaki? Is that you, pipsqueak?"

"Yeah, that's me and stop calling me that already, will ya?" Naruto answered annoyed.

"Hmmm…" Gamabunta thought. _"Naruto Uzumaki…so the jinchuriki of the Nine Tails lives? He must have used its chakra to summon me, there's no way he could do it with his own chakra."_

"Well then, it's there something you actually need me for?" Gamabunta let out an exhale of smoke from his pipe.

"No, sorry to have disturbed you." Jiraiya answered with a slight smile.

"Until we meet again…in an actual emergency I hope? I would like some **real** action." And with that the chief toad disappeared in a large cloud of smoke. Naruto landed on his feet with Hinata in his arms. "Gotcha." He winked making her giggle.

"My hero." She teased earning a slight blush from him.

"Alright, I guess you've mastered it." Jiraiya smiled at Naruto.

"Yes!" He put Hinata on her feet. "So does that mean you will teach me the rasengan now?" He grinned in excitement.

"Not now, the rasengan takes years to master and as far as I know you only have a few weeks until the final exam. I have some other jutsus I can teach you by then."

Naruto frowned at the first part of the sentence but grinned at the last part. "Really? Alright! Let's get started then! The sun hasn't gone down yet!"

"No, that would be it for today and I presume you don't have much chakra left. However, we can still do this." He pulled a piece of paper out of his robe.

"What's that?" Naruto asked confused and a bit disappointed.

"Chakra induction paper?" Hinata added.

"Correct. Would you like to give it a go as well?" Jiraiya asked her.

"I already have. It's water. But thank you."

"Huh?" Naruto's face scrunched up in confusion.

"The chakra induction paper is made from a special type of tree that is grown and fed with chakra. This paper is used to determine one's chakra affinity. " Jiraiya explained.

"Oh! So you put you chakra into it and it will tell you what element you are, I've heard of it." He turned to Hinata. "Yours is water?"

She smiled and nodded.

"Exactly, now let's see what your element is." He handed the paper to him. _"Even thought I have a pretty good feeling about what it will be."_

Naruto took the paper and focused a bit of his chakra in it, almost instantly the paper split in half…but while the half which remained in his hand crumpled the half which fell to the floor caught on fire and turned to ashes.

Jiraiya blinked in shock. "Well..."

Hinata's eyes widened. "No way."

"Huh? What? What does this mean?"

"Naruto, you have three chakra elements. That's amazing!" Hinata smiled happily.

"Three?" Naruto blinked.

"Wind, fire and lightning." Jiraiya smiled.

Naruto stared at him for a moment before jumping up. "Yeah, I'm awesome, I'm a badass! Woo hoo!"

"Well then, we'll meet here tomorrow at the same time and then I will teach you _Shurikenjutsu: replication._ I think that one you will find useful. Also, I think you should give _Wind style: Great Breakthrough_ a go." Jiraiya rubbed his chin.

Naruto grinned in excitement. "You got it!"

"Anyway, I have to go grab a bite, I will see you tomorrow." And with that Jiraiya disappeared with a small hurricane of leaves.

"I wish he would teach me how to disappear like that." Naruto pouted.

"Umm…"

He turned to Hinata just as she deactivated her byakugan. "Hm?" He blinked.

"Er, he did not actually disappear…he just used the wind to block our vision and then just ran away…"

"Are you serious?" He looked at her in disbelief. "That stupid old man."

She giggled before his stomach growled. "Let's go home now."

* * *

On their way home Naruto seemed to be quieter than usual. "Is something wrong?" She asked in concern.

"I uhh, forgot to ask Pervy Sage what those jutsus are…"

"Oh. Well, the Shurikenjutsu: Replication is done by doing specific hand signs immediately after you throw your shuriken thus replicating it while it's in the air. So instead of throwing more shuriken at the enemy you can just throw one and make well…shadow clones of it and save more weapons that way. Of course, the trick is to be quick with your hand signs to be able to perform the jutsu before the shuriken reaches the enemy and catch him by surprise."

"Ahh! That sounds awesome! You know all that stuff? Man, you're really smart!" He tightened the grip he had on her hand making her blush. "Hey, do you know what the other one is?"

She nodded. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough is basically releasing a powerful wave of wind but not a lot of shinobi know this technique as you need to have a lot of chakra to perform it because you need to release some of your chakra with the wind to make it sharper and more powerful. If you perfect it you can knock down trees and walls and blow away your enemies, more of them at once even."

"Woah, that's even cooler!"

She smiled. "I know these will be a piece of cake for you." She kissed his cheek.

He chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "Ya know, I need to get you to explain things to me more often. I love listening to your beautiful voice."He added softly returning the kiss.

"O-oh…w-well s-sure…" Her face turned beet red.

"Huh? But you didn't stutter once when you were talking…" He teased.

She smiled. _"He has no idea what he's doing to me…"_

* * *

The finals of the chunin exam approached slowly for everyone except for the participants whose time flied with intense daily training. Naruto was no exception. He slowly got a hand of the Wind Style jutsu but he had surprised Jiraiya by mastering the shuriken replication relatively fast. He had to admit though, the kid's aim was terrible at first so it took some time to get the jutsu down perfectly. But not before he rubbed his inability to hit the targets in his face. Hinata was right however, those jutsus were practically a piece of cake.

At one point later in the night Jiraiya would make an excuse to leave, leaving the two alone but they wouldn't go home right away, they would spar until the sun went down completely leaving them in the darkness, which was of course, no problem for Hinata's byakugan.

After days and nights of preparations that day finally came. People and nobles from other lands and villages started showing up in front of the main gate including all four Kages from other villages of course. The final round of the chunin exams was a big event because unlike the first two rounds and the preliminaries a lot of rich and average people placed a lot of bets on the contestants a soon as the list of the matchups was released. And the very first match scheduled was the one between Naruto and Neji so there was no doubting about which one should they bet on, naturally they all chose Neji… except for Iruka and Teuchi.

Every time someone would come to Ichiraku's for ramen they were of course talking about the exams and they would randomly ask Teuchi who he put his money on. After getting the answer they would call him crazy for doing that. Iruka got the same reaction from his fellow chunin teachers at the academy. But they both had faith in their favorite teen ninja and they knew he will not let them down…he never does.

Naruto didn't have any idea about this and he was currently at his apartment sitting at the table and…trying to eat breakfast. He was actually nervous about the exams and the knot in his stomach was killing his appetite, which he didn't even think is possible with Hinata's cooking. But it wasn't the fight itself the thing that terrified him, it's who he's fighting against.

"Is something wrong?" Hinata looked at him in concern. "Is it burnt? Did I add enough salt? Is it too much salt?" Her voice grew higher with every question.

Naruto grinned at her humorously. "Relax, the food is great as always, it's just…I'm kind of…anxious…" He admitted.

"I know you will win. I have no doubt."

"You're just saying that cuz you love me, you can't predict what will happen."

She blushed and sat in his lap cupping his cheeks with her soft hands. "You are the strongest person I know, Naruto. I know you are going to make everyone proud, not that they aren't proud of you already." She encouraged him.

He smiled and removed her hands from his face, but not before kissing them. "Thanks for that, you always know what to say. I love you."

She giggled. "I love you too."

"So how about a looong kiss for good luck, huh?"

* * *

About ten minutes later the two were walking down the street hand in hand slowly approaching the arena. Hinata could tell Naruto was getting more and more tense the closer they got. He was constantly biting his lower lip, his hand was sweating and he was silent the whole way there. Hinata tugged at his arm to get his attention and gave him an encouraging smile which he returned.

Upon getting closer to the arena they noticed that the area around it was becoming crowded, and that's when they heard the whispers of the civilians who were waiting to get inside.

"Hey, is that the kid who's fighting in the first round?"

"Yeah, he's fighting that Hyuga kid."

"Him? No way."

"I heard that the Hyuga one is the strongest in his clan."

"He doesn't stand a chance!"

"Well, at least it will be a quick match so they could move on to the good stuff."

"Yeah, an Uchiha is fighting that sand guy. I can't wait to see that one!"

Hinata gave them a terrified glance before she noticed that Naruto's steps got quicker and he literally dragged her inside. Once they got out of sight he let go of her hand stuffing both of his in his pockets. "Stupid people…" He grumbled under his breath.

"Don't listen to them, they don't know you! You will show them that-"

"Why are they so excited to see Sasuke? I bet they don't know him either!" Naruto interrupted her angrily.

She walked up to him and played with his collar. "You are not anxious about Sasuke nor those people nor the fight… Neji is what you are afraid off, isn't it?"

He didn't respond.

"And you aren't afraid of fighting him, you are afraid of losing…because you think you will disappoint me if you do."

He nodded briefly, still unable to look at her.

"Oh, Naruto…I will not be disappointed if you lose."

"But I vowed to beat him…for you…"

"And you will, I know it…and you know it to." She gave him a sweet look that instantly loosed the knot in his stomach. This was his girl, the girl that loved him and cared for him. He can't look like a bad boyfriend in front of all those people.

The determination suddenly came back to his eyes. "Yeah… yeah! And I will, believe it! And then he'll know not to mess with you or me ever again!"

She grinned. "Yes!"

After a long hug they were in front of the hall whose door had sign CONTESTANTS on it.

"Well, this is it." He looked at her and smiled. "Make sure you get a good seat so you can watch me win."

She nodded and they kissed once again. Waving he ran down the hall and she ran up the stairs towards the seats. Getting there she looked for a good seat until a voice called out her name. Turning towards the direction it came from she saw Ino waving at her and Sakura and the rest of the rookies sitting in the same row.

Running up to them she greeted them. "How are you all doing?"

"Great, and I see you're doing better. We saved you a seat." Ino patted the seat next to her.

"Oh! Thank you."

Taking her seat they made small talk until the proctor announced the start of the matches, after explaining the rules to the participants lined up in front of him he yelled out.

"Neji Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki… please step forward!"


	20. Naruto vs Neji

**A/N:** Woo! Chapter 20! A milestone! And the big fight is here!

The audience was dead silent as they anticipated the first move of the first match. Hinata gripped the hem of her blue shirt, which Naruto complimented earlier, as she watched her cousin stare motionlessly at her boyfriend.

Naruto stared back at him while a drop of sweat slowly made its way down each of his three whiskers. The proctor didn't give them a sign to begin yet so Naruto seized the opportunity to speak his mind.

"Before we begin, I want you to tell me something." He said seriously, his eyes not leaving Neji's.

Neji raised a brow. "What?"

"Why did you hurt Hinata like that?"

Neji was still focused but puzzled. "Tell me you're joking… That's what you're supposed to do in a match if you hadn't known that before."

"Don't act like you're the smartest freaking guy on the planet, you know what I meant!" Naruto yelled in anger, his fists tightening. "You two are family, you didn't fight like you're in a match against a family member, you would have killed her if the others hadn't stopped you!"

"Are you blaming me for her weakness? You're her boyfriend, you should know better than anyone how pathetic she is." Neji smirked slightly.

Naruto bared his canines in anger. "What did you say?"

Up in the audience someone else's anger was slowly building up. Hiashi's cold eyes widened in shock. "He's her _what_?"

Hanabi turned to him in surprise. "Father, those two are together?"

"Seems like I haven't been informed about that either…" He glanced several rows above and his eyes met his daughter's worried expression.

"She's most definitely not pathetic or weak! She's stronger than you think and she's not afraid to fight and train until she drops. That's what kind of person she is, she never gives up! And neither do I! That's my nindo, my ninja way and imma beat you to a bloody pulp!" Naruto took his stance, his anger building up.

"Heh…I've heard that before…" Neji smirked. "It is not a strong commitment nor a goal, it doesn't mean anything. It is your destiny to lose and it was hers as well."

"Why do you hate her so much? What did she ever do to you?! The way you're talking about her I can tell that she didn't hurt you physically and I know that she'd never insult you. So why do you hold a grudge against her?!"

"I do not expect you to understand, Uzumaki. What's between us is clan business, but if you must know I will tell you about the cruel fate of the former heiress of the Hyuga clan."

"Huh?" Naruto dropped out of his stance.

Neji slowly raised his hands behind his head and started untying his headband. Naruto's eyes widened as the green mark on Neji's forehead became apparent.

"This is the caged bird seal. The curse of the branch house of the Hyuga clan." Neji began explaining. "The Hyugas are the most powerful clan in all of Konoha, so naturally our prized kekkei genkai must be protected from anyone who tries to take its power. The Hyuga clan is divided into two houses: the main house and the branch house. The branch houses serve the main house, but to make sure the byakugan is not misused by anyone in or outside the branch house every member of the branch house is marked with this cursed seal. That is how the fate of our lives is ultimately decided. But you see, Lady Hinata's and my own lives could have been reversed if her father had not been born mere minutes before my father, his identical twin. That automatically meant that her father Hiashi was to be in the main house while my father Hizashi was to be in the branch house to serve his twin brother."

Naruto listened silently, but the more his opponent talked the more uneasy he felt. He knew about the houses but Hinata hadn't told him any of this…the worse part, he could understand why.

The audience was astounded by the revelation as well. Hinata had gotten pail and uncomfortable. She hated how the things in hr clan were, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She didn't want to listen to all of this again.

"We were free of the seal up until Lady Hinata's third birthday, that's when all members of the branch house were marked…including myself."Neji continued. "On her third birthday we also celebrated peace between our allies, one of them was the Village hidden in the Clouds. But that faithful night someone attempted to kidnap Lady Hinata while she was asleep in the hopes of stealing the power of the byakugan. Her father caught and killed the kidnapper only to find out it was the Cloud ninja we just signed the peace offering with."

Naruto's jaw audibly dropped. _"What?!"_

"When the Cloud got word of their ninja getting killed they demanded the life of the murderer. But…if Hiashi were to die, the Hyuga clan would be left without their leader and they couldn't let that happen…" Neji visibly started to shake, his hand gripping his headband. "So instead of turning over his body…as the main role of the branch house is to protect the main house…they gave them the body of **my** father…"

Naruto stared at him in shock. Gasps could be heard from the audience. Hiashi and Hanabi both closed their eyes, they didn't want to be reminded of that horrible event either.

"Do you see what this destiny did to me? The main house has complete control over me. All that is required to activate this curse mark and give me incredible pain is one simple hand sign which if held for too long could be fatal. I am destined to die protecting the people who didn't deserve to be protected and they could get rid of me any time they wish!"

Neji glared at Naruto as the proctor backed away.

"That sill doesn't answer my question." Naruto finally said.

"What?!"

"So you're telling me that you hate Hinata because her dad was born before yours?! How can that possibly be her fault?! There is nothing she can do about it! Yet you insult her, you disrespect her and you leash out your anger on her like it was her fault that she was even born!"

"You will never understand, I will not waste my breath explaining it to you." Neji tied his headband around his forehead again.

"Well, you don't even have to!"

"What?" Neji raised his brow.

"I hate to break it to you, but you're not the only special one around here… to be marked against your will…to live a life surrounded by hate for something that is not your fault…I know exactly what that feels like." He put his hand on his stomach, only some people in the audience knew what that gesture meant.

"And so what? Who cares!"

Neji's byakugan activated against his will. "You…little…" He gritted his teeth in rage.

"Even though it was rough I never gave up, I made friends and my life is getting better because I don't hold a grudge against anyone anymore…and someday I'm gonna become the Hokage! And when I do I'll change the way of the Hyuga!"

All pairs of white pearly eyes in the audience widened.

"But first…I need to beat you, so enough talking let's get it on!"

They both got in their stances and the proctor gave the sign before backing out of the battle field.

* * *

Up in the viewing area where the five Kages sat, a bloody and badly winded Hayate limped his way towards them. Earlier that day, no one could find him and as he was supposed to be the proctor of the final exams he was replaced by Genma who just gave the sign for the two to begin the match still chewing on the piece of straw that always seemed to be in his mouth. It was like cigarettes to Asuma.

As he slowly approached the area a jonin with a scar on his face Raido Namiashi, saw him but just as he was about to shout at him, Hayate put his bloody finger over his bruised lips giving him a sign to be quiet.

Raido approached him in concern. "What happened to you? We've been looking for you all day." He whispered.

"I need to talk to Lord Hokage immediately. It's an emergency." Hayate said breathlessly.

"You need to go to the hospital!" Raido whispered back. "And Lord Hokage can't just step out, the first match just began and not to mention that it's his favorite genin that's fighting."

Hayate panted. "Then tell him this… the Kazekage and his team are involved with the Sound and their team, including that guy Kabuto. He's a spy from the Sound and he's the one who did this to me. They are planning on destroying the village using the power of their Jinchuuriki, Gaara."

"What?!" Raido glanced at the Kazekage in shock. It seems that he hasn't noticed that their plan to murder Hayate failed, and even if he did there is nothing he can do about it now, he's in a public place, crowded, where every move is being watched.

"Ok, I will tell him. I'll send Raven with you to the hospital to make sure nothing happens to you."

"One more thing." Hayate whispered as Raido discreetly called over the ANBU with the raven mask. "The ANBU in the upper left corner of the stadium with the monkey mask… that's Kabuto."

Raido nodded and hurried towards the Hokage as Raven led Hayate away.

"Lord Hokage."

"What is it?" He responded, his eyes were still fixed to the battle field where Neji was currently destroying Naruto's clones.

Raido approached him on the right as the Kazekage sat to his left and whispered the shocking discovery in his ear, watching as the Hokage's eyes became wider and wider.

"What is the plan of action?" Raido asked quietly.

"The exams will proceed as planned until we notice any trace of disturbance while you arrest Kabuto and hand him over to Ibiki." Hokage replied quietly, his eyes still focused on the fight.

Kazekage glanced at Hiruzen and raised a brow then focused his attention back on the fight not knowing that his disastrous plan was about to become… a disaster.

* * *

As soon as Genma shouted "Begin!" Naruto made his signature hand sign and sent a bunch of clones onto Neji knowing that he couldn't get too close to him as he would shut of his chakra points.

Neji activated his byakugan and was surprised at the fact that he could not distinguish the real one from the clones as Naruto had dispersed his chakra evenly among the clones. As he kept destroying the clones Naruto just kept making more of them trying to get close to Neji.

"It is an impressive technique…" Neji commented as he hit a clone in the stomach. "But you will not be able to rely on it for much longer as you will run out of chakra."

"We'll just see about that." The clone muttered before dispersing. He tried using the smoke cloud as a cover up for the last remaining clone who was running towards Neji with a kunai, but of course that plan failed as the byakugan can see through smoke as well. Neji caught the clone's hand, the kunai mere inches from his face, and twisted his arm while his other hand with two fingers out prepared to blow up the clone. But just as his fingers touched the fabric of Naruto's jacket his all seeing eyes noticed an evil smirk on the clone's face and his fingers froze. _"It's a trick."_ Neji thought as he grabbed the clones other hand with his free one and twisted it as well as the other one making the clone hiss in discomfort before he used his foot to kick the clone away from him, snatching the kunai from his hand. As the clone toppled way from him, Neji threw the kunai at him but instead of smoke the clone burst in a loud explosion nearly reaching his opponent. _"The clone was hiding a paper bomb."_ Neji looked back towards the scowling Naruto.

"Hn. It might have worked if you hadn't gotten cocky at the last second." Neji mocked.

"Damn it." Naruto growled. _"What now?"_

His blue eyes scouted the surroundings for a second before his gaze went back to his opponent. _"I can't summon a toad now, I don't know how that could help me with this guy! And what if it doesn't work? I'll be wasting my chakra for nothing! Think! Come on, think!"_

Neji took his stance again. "Giving up already?"

"In your dreams! Shadow clone jutsu!" And with that a dozen more Narutos attacked Neji who proceeded to once again turn them into smoke.

"This is getting ridiculous. You know these clones won't work against me." Neji said. "It does not matter that I cannot distinguish the real one, I'll gladly turn you into smoke as well."

Naruto looked on nervously until his eyes widened as the clones gave him an idea. He used the opportunity to take out a shuriken from his pouch and wrap a paper bomb around it. As the last clone puffed into smoke, Neji looked at him before Naruto threw the shuriken towards him. Neji looked at the shuriken heading towards him. "You're kidding?" But not a second later the shuriken multiplied by eight in the air as Naruto roared: "Shurikenjutsu: Replication!" Neji got ready to dodge the shuriken but as the paper bombs multiplied with the shuriken they exploded before they even reached him.

Neji shielded his eyes with his arms as the explosion blew him away knocking him into the wall behind him.

Hiashi's eyes widened. "Hmmm…"

Hinata rose from her seat. "Yes!"

"No way! He got him! I never even managed to do so!" Lee added in astonishment, his hands gripping his crutch.

Naruto smirked happily. "Finally, it worked."

Neji groaned as he rose back onto his feet and walked towards the middle of the field. Naruto's smile dropped as Neji activated his byakugan again and put his hand out. "Is that all you've got?"

"You've got to be kidding…" Naruto muttered.

Not knowing what else to do, Naruto proceeded to use his clones and weapons again to try to get close to him but the fight continued for 15 more minutes to no avail. Knowing that his shuriken trick worked earlier Naruto decided to attempt it again. It all went as planned until Neji once again spotted the shuriken but this time he was not to be fooled. Neji spun around with a wave of thick chakra surrounding him as he yelled: "Eight Trigrams Sixty four Palms: Evolving Heavenly Rotation!" All the shuriken did not even get close to him as they were all whipped in all directions, some ending up in the wall other in the ground.

Naruto watched in disbelief. "What the hell is that?!"

Hiashi gripped his robes. _"How did he…? That jutsu is forbidden for the branch house."_

"Father, is that…?" Hanabi looked at her father who nodded in affirmation.

Tenten smiled confidently at her teammate. _"Sorry Naruto, but you don't stand a chance."_

"I'm sorry to tell you, but that move will not work on me anymore." Neji smirked.

Naruto growled as a knot appeared in his stomach. In pure rage he whipped out a kunai from the holster wrapped around his right leg and ran towards Neji. Neji took his stance as he watched his opponent angrily run towards him. "What a fool."

Kiba gripped his hair with his hands as Akamaru whined. "What is he doing? Don't get close to him you idiot!"

"No, Naruto!" All Hinata could do at that point was watch as her boyfriend kept striking at her cousin who kept dodging his every move.

Naruto couldn't get the kunai close to him, he couldn't even give him a scratch. And then the words that everyone had feared left Neji's mouth as his two fingers landed on Naruto's wrist causing him to drop the kunai he was holding in his hand. "Eight trigrams sixty four palm!"

"No!" Hinata paled as she fell back in her seat. "No, Naruto…"

Naruto groaned. "What? I can't… feel…my arm…"

Neji's fingers struck both of his shoulders. "Two palm!" Then both of his thighs. "Four palm!"Naruto yelped in pain as Neji continued to strike various parts of his body. "Eight palm!"

"Not good." Kakashi frowned under his mask.

"Sixteen palm!"

"It was bound to happen."TenTen smiled.

"Thirty two palm!"

"This match is finished." Gai added.

" **Sixty four palm!"**

With that final roar Neji finished his jutsu as Naruto screamed in pain and was send flying and toppling through the dirt before finally landing onto his stomach, motionless.

Hinata's breath caught in her throat. There was no recovering from that move.

"Wha… what happened?" Ino watched the stadium in disbelief.

"He just hit all of Naruto's chakra points…he shut off his chakra, it's over." Kiba petted his whining partner.

Ino and Sakura looked at him in shock then they turned to Hinata. "Is there anything he can do?"

Hinata slowly shook her head, her watery eyes were fixed on her roommate's still body. "No…he cannot use h-his c-chakra a-anymore…"

And then she blinked away the tears as a realization struck her. _"Wait…if he can't use his normal chakra anymore then…could he use the Fox's chakra?"_ Hope leaked in her heart as she looked at her sensei. By the look in her eyes and her placing her hand on her stomach, Kakashi could tell exactlywhat she was thinking so he gave her a nod letting her know that it was possible. Her eyes lit up and she focused on the battlefield again.

Neji slowly walked a bit closer to Naruto's limp body. "I told you your dream is foolish. What made you think someone like you could become the Hokage? Like I said… once a failure… always a failure."

Neji started walking away and then looked at Genma. "Proctor, call the match."

"No."

Neji's eyes widened as his head snapped towards his opponent as the crowd started gasping and yelling.

Naruto was slowly getting back up on his feet. He panted and swallowed wiping blood from his chin and looked at Neji. "I'm not done yet."

"Impossible! How can you even move after that?!" Neji yelled in disbelief.

Hinata gripped the hem of her shirt as a smile split her face. "Naruto…Yes!"

"How is that possible?" TenTen stared at the blonde in shock. "There's just no way!"

Even the four Kage were surprised, but Hiruzen just smiled at his favorite genin and nodded in approval.

Naruto looked at Neji with determination before making a hand sign and closing his eyes in concentration. He roared as he tried to gather up chakra.

"What do you even think you're doing? You cannot use your chakra!" Neji asked in anger. "Do you want to kill yourself? Why don't you just give up?"

Neji's cold glare met Naruto's , this time just as cold. "Because you called me failure…I'll prove you wrong!"

He yelled out as the small rocks around his feet began to shake and waves of red chakra began appearing around him as the scratches and bruises on him started disappearing.

Neji activated his byakugan and looked in shock as his chakra points began re-activating. _"What is that chakra?! It's visible even without my byakugan!"_ His thoughts were interrupted as his eyes moved to his stomach as a menacing grin and two evil eyes formed in the chakra causing Neji to back away from him. _"Is that even chakra at all?!"_

The chakra was now out of sight as was Naruto who moved in a flash surprising Neji. Taking out a kunai himself he blocked Naruto's which was, unlike earlier, just an inch away from his face. "What are you?!"

The strikes kept coming as Naruto finally managed to get close enough to Neji to fight him hand to hand.

Naruto disappeared again and appeared a few feet away from him. _"How did he get so fast?"_

"Let's end this already!" The chakra around Naruto increased.

The members of the audience who had the unfortunate chance of feeling the chakra on that faithful night thirteen years ago were stunned as that grizzly feeling washed over them again, but this time it felt less evil and it seemed as it wasn't aimed at anybody, it was simply there at that one point which was Naruto, not trying to escape.

Naruto surged towards Neji who yelled: "Evolving Heavenly Rotation!" Blue chakra burst around his as their kunais and clashing chakras met in a large explosion. The wave from the blast washed over the audience and thick smoke covered the battlefield.

"What happened?" Kiba squinted as he tried to see through the smoke.

Finally, the smoke cleared but all that was visible were the proctor who was getting back on his feet and wiping the dirt off of his vest, and two holes in the ground.

"Which one's which?" Ino's eyes went from one hole to the other.

"Did they both lose? What happened?" Sakura gulped.

Suddenly, the dirt in one of the holes started moving and a hand popped out. Hinata quickly activated her byakugan and gasped. Everyone knew what that meant.

Their suspicions were confirmed as an exhausted Neji slowly crawled out of the hole. He limped towards the other hole and looked at Naruto's unconscious figure. "Sorry…" He panted. "But this is reality…you're a-"

He was interrupted by movement under his feet…and a fist bursting out of the ground and nailing him in the jaw.

Neji spat out blood and collapsed on the ground. "Can't…move…" He groaned unsuccessfully trying to get up. He looked forward as Naruto approached him equally exhausted, blood dripping from his broken nails.

Silence prevailed for a few second before Genma's voice rang through the arena.

" **The winner of the first match: Naruto Uzumaki!"**


	21. The end and the beginning

_Neji spat out blood and collapsed on the ground. "Can't…move…" He groaned unsuccessfully trying to get up. He looked forward as Naruto approached him equally exhausted, blood dripping from his broken nails._

 _Silence prevailed for a few second before Genma's voice rang through the arena._

" _ **The winner of the first match: Naruto Uzumaki!"**_

Slowly the arena erupted into applause and whistles and yells. Naruto panted and looked up at the audience, they were smiling and cheering for him. _"They…they 're happy that I won…they don't hate me even though the fox…"_

The smile on his face grew bigger and bigger before he pumped his fists in the air happily. "Yeah!" He laughed running around the arena.

Genma's eyes followed him around the arena. He shook his head impressed at the fact that after all of that he still had energy to run around. _"That kid's on his way."_ He smiled.

Naruto stopped in the middle of the arena to catch his breath. He grinned looking around the audience, they were still cheering. To finally be acknowledged…it felt amazing. Suddenly he forgot all about those glares people gave him when they would see him on the street… those same people… all of them… were now cheering for him.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he saw a familiar figure running towards him.

* * *

When Neji crawled out of his hole and the smoke completely cleared, Hinata's heart stopped when she saw her beloved's body motionlessly lying in the dirt. She thought it was over, he had lost… but when he burst out of the ground beneath Neji's feet and the body in the hole burst into smoke revealing another hole underneath it and her cousin collapsed into the dirt, she couldn't believe what she was seeing. That had seemed to be a major turn in events as she wasn't the only one absolutely shocked by Naruto's unexpected win. Kakashi, Gai and all the genin around her visibly displayed shock on their faces. And they weren't the only ones. When she ran down the stairs towards the arena she caught a glimpse of the other members of her clan, including her father. They were completely stunned as well.

But what stunned Hiashi even more was what his eldest daughter did next.

Getting onto the battle field she ran towards her boyfriend just as he turned towards her. He grinned happily when he saw her and spread his arms to catch her into a hug. Instead, Hinata jumped onto him wrapping her arms around his neck, almost making him fall, and after he wrapped his arms around her waist… she gave him a long, joyful kiss.

Needless to say, the audacious move the Hyuga Princess pulled earned quite the reaction from the astounded audience. The cheers, whistles and yells became louder.

"No way!"

"Oh my God!"

"Way to go, kid!"

"Are you seeing this?!"

"He has a girlfriend? Aw… but he's kinda cute…"

"Now this is a show! I'm so glad I came to see the matches!"

Sakura's and Ino's jaws dropped but not nearly as much as Lee's did. After all he was at the hospital and he didn't even know the two liked each other let alone this.

"The flames of their youth burn brighter that ever!" Gai was tearing up.

"They sure do." Kakashi stared at his two students.

The two were aware of what was happening around them, but even when the two released each other the kiss continued for a few more seconds before the two broke apart.

"You did it! You actually did it!" Hinata wiped her happy tears.

"Of course I did it! You doubted me?" He grinned.

She giggled. "Of course no-" but when her heart calmed down and her vision became clear again, she looked up at the audience and realized what she had just done… in front of the whole village.

"Eeeep!" She squealed hiding her face in Naruto's jacket making him laugh.

"Let's get out of here, the second match should start now." She nodded and she headed towards the exit. "Wait a sec." Naruto said, his smile dropped and was replaced with a serious expression. He walked towards Neji who was still on the ground.

"You know…I failed the graduation test three times…"

Neji blinked in surprise.

"Cuz there was this one jutsu that I just couldn't get, no matter how hard I tried. " Naruto continued looking at him. "That's right, I flunked the Shadow Clone jutsu every time. But now…it's my specialty. So don't go wining to me about that destiny crap, cuz it means nothing to me."

Neji didn't say a thing.

"I worked hard and I changed my destiny, and so can you. You can't blame your life on other people. You choose how you want to live. It was your choice to hate Hinata and it was your choice to underestimate me and make fun of me, and look where your so called destiny got you. You need to let that go… and set yourself free."

Neji wordlessly looked up at the bird that flew across the arena. His eyes were drawn to a destroyed nest the bird came from. It must have been damaged in the wave of their battle… but the bird chose to build a nest there…

Naruto walked away with Hinata and the cheering died down. The medics carried Neji away and the exams were to continue.

* * *

Up in the viewing area where the contestants watched the match. Kin and Zaku made their way towards the contestants as Zaku was in the hospital getting treatment for the damage Shino's bugs caused to his arms.

"Kankuro, we have a problem." Zaku said in a serious tone.

"Hm?" Kankuro turned his attention towards his teammate. Temari turned towards them while Gaara just glanced.

"I snuck out of the village before the exam started and went to meet with Lord Orochimaru as planned." Kin explained. "Seems he got a word from Kabuto… we're busted, they know about our plan."

"What? How?" Kankuro replied.

"Hayate." Kin answered.

"Didn't Kabuto say he took care of him?" Kankuro's brows furrowed in anger.

"Seems like he didn't." Zaku added. "And that's not all…they caught Kabuto and handed him over to that psycho proctor from the first exam."

"Damn it." Kankuro spat. "My match is up next and the plan was for me to forfeit anyways so I say we scam before we get caught too."

"We need to let the Kazekage know first." Kin said.

"He doesn't know?" Temari's eyes went wide. "We need to be quick."

She was cut off by the proctor who called Shino and Kankuro down to start the second match. While Shino made his way down towards the battle field he stopped dead in his tracks after Kankuro loudly announced that he's backing out of the fight. As the shocked audience protested and booed, Genma called Shino the winner and Invited Temari and Shikamaru to the field.

"Go, I'll buy you some time." Temari said before she used her fan to elegantly transport herself to her position where Shikamaru was waiting…in the dirt, looking at the orange clad idiot who had pushed him over the railing and a giggling Hinata who was standing next to him.

As the fight started one of the jounin burst into the viewing area where the Kage were sitting and whispered into the Hokage's ear.

"Lord Hokage, we have an emergency. One of the ANBU just spotted Orochimaru just outside the village."

"What?!" Hiruzen whispered back. "Make sure he doesn't get in the village, pull all the jounin out of the arena except Genma."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Almost half an hour later there was no word from the jounin as Shikamaru made his way back to the viewing area.

"You idiot! What in the actual fuck were you thinking?! You had her and you forfeit?! What's wrong with you?!" Naruto was red with rage and incredibly confused about the outcome of the match.

"I don't want to waste my breath explaining it to you."Shikamaru said calmly looking at Temari who wasn't enjoying the applause. But the look on her face as she looked around the audience wasn't the one of the thought that she didn't deserve the applause, but it seemed as she was looking for something or someone.

"Unbelievable… The puppet guy forfeits, you forfeit, that Sound guy with long sleeves ends up dead and Sasuke has to fight that creepy Sand guy who beat the shit out of Lee. Am I gonna be the only one that **actually** won this freaking thing?" Naruto rubbed his temples before turning towards Hinata. "Actually that's not that bad."

She giggled. "But Sasuke might win. You thought that you were not going to win, remember? So you never know."

"Yeah, you're right. All we can do now is cheer for him, right?" She nodded.

Temari was back next to Gaara as Genma invited Sasuke and him down to the battle area. "Gaara, Lord Orochimaru will be here soon, we don't have time for this." Temari said quietly.

"I don't care." Gaara responded coldly not even looking at her. "Mother wants blood." He disappeared in a wave of sand before reappearing in the battle field across from Sasuke. "Let's get this over with."

"Hn." Sasuke smirked.

Suddenly Gaara flinched and grabbed his head moaning in pain. "Patience mother… you will soon have fresh spilled blood…"

Sasuke's eyes widened. _"What is he talking about? Who is he talking to?"_

A few seconds later Gaara returned to his usual passive self and crossed his arms. "Go ahead… I will give you a brief moment before I kill you… attack." He had seemed to be looking at Sasuke but his eyes seemed so dull and cloudy, almost like he was looking through him.

Sasuke raised a brow at his words before sand started to pour out of the gourd on Gaara's back.

" _So this is the sand Kakashi told me about… is it really that dangerous? Well, I guess I would know if I had seen him fight Lee at the preliminaries. Guess we'll just have to see."_

Sasuke charged at Gaara but just as he was about to punch him a knob of sand swiftly rose from the ground and blocked his punch but then started to crawl up his arm. Sasuke shook the sand off of his arm before going in for another punch only to have the sand block it again. He punched repeatedly, trying to get close to the guy but the sand did exactly what Kakashi said it would do. He could not lay a finger on Gaara, and the guy was doing nothing. He was just standing there glaring at him. He almost menacingly grinned at him seeing that he was gettingagitated that he wasn't able to hit him.

He used all four of his limbs trying to inflict some kind of damage but to no avail. But then he thought of something. He charged him again but this time activating his Sharingan. He was hoping to use it later in the battle to surprise his opponent but it seemed like there was no other choice at this point. As the majority of the sand flew in front of Gaara to protect him Sasuke smirked and moved behind him in incredible speed. Gaara's eyes widened as the Uchiha swiftly disappeared out of his view. Feeling his opponent behind him he turned only to see his fist as it slammed on his cheek, cracking his sand armor and knocking him to the ground.

Naruto jumped up as he gripped the railing. "He got him!"

"Yes!" Hinata agreed happily.

Gai narrowed his eyes. "Such speed…"

Lee looked in shock. _"That move… that's my taijutsu!"_

"So that's the sand armor, huh?" Sasuke asked rhetorically. "Come on." He challenged Gaara who in return just sat there staring at him. "Then if you won't come at me, I'll just come at you!"

And with that he charged at him again and the blows at the sand continued, however this time the reaction of the sand was delayed as it had trouble keeping up with Sasuke's kicks. Gai and Lee looked on, astonished by his incredible speed. It was the same speed Lee had when he would remove his weights. But lee needed years to get to that level of speed…but it took Sasuke less than a month to get there.

" _Sasuke… you really are a genius beyond imagination..."_ Lee mused.

Finally Sasuke landed one more punch causing the crack on his face to become wider, but before Gaara went onto the ground Sasuke grabbed the straps of his coat and pulled his towards him and his knee dug into Gaara's stomach.

Gaara made some distance from Sasuke as he sat on the ground angered. His sand scattered on the ground around him.

Temari looked in shock. "He got hit again. There's no way!"

Kankuro shook his head as a drop of sweat appeared on his face. "The sand armor takes too much chakra… he won't last long like this…"

Gaara finally got on his feet and made a hand sign causing all the sand to start to gather around him in a perfect sphere. Sasuke grimaced. "What now?"

As the sand covered him in layers Sasuke attempted to get in another punch before the sand closed him off completely but as he charged at the hole that that getting smaller, stiff spikes burst out of the sand and he froze. He felt a drop of blood trickle down his face and more blood leak out of his fist that was still pressed against the sand. He didn't know what kind of jutsu this could be so he jumped away from the sphere.

" _The sand is a lot harder now, there's a major difference in the density this time. I can't get to him now."_

He attempted to break the sand over and over again but the spikes just kept coming. But as he got closer to Gaara in those attempts he could hear him repeating hand signs. But for what?

" _What is he up to? I think I should just break the sand before he has a chance to finish it."_

Sasuke then made some hand signs himself and held his left hand with is right as a blue ball began forming in it leashing out lightning bolt type chakra around it.

Hiruzen raised his hat so he could see better. _"Is that…Kakashi… of course you did…"_

"What is that?!" Naruto leaned over the railing.

Sasuke roared: "Chidori!" Before running towards the sand sphere.

Sakura's eyes widened. "That's amazing! The chakra is visible to the naked eye!"

"And you can hear it too. It's like electricity!" Ino added.

As the Chidori made contact with the sphere a large cloud of sand formed around Sasuke as he looked in front of him with his sharingan. "Got you."

Inside the sphere which seemed untouched, Gaara was now looking at his hands… on them there was something he has never seen before… and frankly he thought he would never even see…

"Blood…" Gaara stammered out. "My… blood…"

Suddenly a menacing scream came out of the sphere. **"MY BLOOD!"**

Sasuke backed away as a giant sand claw burst out of the sphere.

"No! Gaara!" Temari yelled out.

The Kazekage cringed. _"No… this will ruin our plan! Not yet Gaara!"_

"YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!" Gaara yelled out as the claw became ever bigger and sand started to engulf half of his body and a sand tail started to form. The tail smashed into the ground and it came back up with such force it sent pieces of rock flying into the audience. The arena filled with screams as people started running out of it.

As if the situation couldn't get any worse a beat up jounin appeared next to the Hokage. "Lord Hokage, we couldn't stop him!"

Hiruzen got up and yelled. "Evacuate the arena immediately! The exams are over!"

"Yes, sir."

The Kazekage slammed his fist against his chair. "Damn it!" But as he got up to leave two ANBU blackops appeared in front of him. "You aren't going anywhere."

Hiruzen, now dressed in his armor appeared in front of the closed village gates where dozens of bloody jounin were lying on the ground.

He looked around. They were still breathing. But **his** breath caught in his throat as a familiar voice addressed him.

"Well, well… It is nice to see you are still alive, Sarutobi."

He turned towars the owner of the voice and frowned. "I wish I could say it was nice to see you are alive, but it is not…"

"… Orochimaru…"


	22. Gaara

**A/N:** Woo! I'm officially starting college so the chapters MIGHT come a bit slower so please bear with me!

Total panic ensued in the Leaf Village. Civilians rushed inside the protective shelter, but not by their own free will… it's because they had to. Their homes were no longer safe, massive destruction could come upon their village. But hopefully their beloved Hokage won't let that happen.

It was hard going into that dark, isolated shelter… the reason being not just that it means disaster in their home and the need for protection and reduced casualties but also because the last and the first time these people went into this shelter was thirteen years ago… when the Nine Tailed Fox attacked. It was painful to be reminded of that day again. Just like back then, the sobbing kids gripped their parents tightly… the parents who used to be the kids. No one knew what was to come. Will they see their houses again? Or will it all be destroyed?

The people who would witness the chaos first hand were the ones who were outside the shelter, all the shinobi of the village… including the genin. But not all the genin were inside the village. Naruto and Hinata headed towards the infuriated Gaara who was chasing Sasuke for revenge. Back at the stadium as people began fleeing the scene Sasuke knew that this could mean a lot of damage to the village so he let Gaara on a goose chase to get him outside the village.

Naruto and Hinata jumped over tree branches hoping to catch up to Sasuke as they could hear Gaara's growl from the distance. Not long after they were stopped by Temari and Kankuro.

"You're not going anywhere, brats." Kankuro smirked.

"What do you want?! That bastard is after out teammate, we've got to help him!" Naruto yelled.

"Well, that 'bastard' is our teammate and brother so we are helping him!" Temari fired back.

"Go."

Naruto turned towards his girlfriend in shock. "What?! What do you mean go?! I'm not g-"

"Just go! Help Sasuke, I can handle them, please believe in me." Hinata got in her stance and activated her byakugan.

"But…" Naruto looked at her in worry but seeing the confidence in her eyes he exhaled and shook his head. "Ok, I believe in you… but be careful."

"I will, go."

With that Naruto dodged behind Temari and Kankuro and sprinted towards his teammate.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!" Temari turned towards the fleeing blonde.

"Temari, go after him, I can handle the little brat." Kankuro set down his Crow after Temari nodded and headed after Naruto.

"You don't know what you just got into, little girl. I forfeited my match so you haven't seen anything yet."

"I might be a little girl… but you are the one playing with a doll." Needles to say, Hinata was just as shocked as he was at what just came out of her mouth. She was definitely not the one to backfire but her boyfriend was so he was definitely rubbing off on her. His courage was definitely one of the things that she absorbed from him because she was ready to prove herself against the puppet master.

* * *

Naruto skipped branches with Temari chasing after him, she yelled insults at him hoping to get him to stop and face her but Naruto ignored the insults and just kept going. Temari pulled her fan out getting ready to attack but they were both stopped dead in their track after the heard a menacing growl.

"Gaara, no!" Temari yelled at her teammate who suddenly appeared in front of them, swiping his giant sand claw at Sasuke who swiftly dodged it. Half of his body and face were submerged in sand. It didn't seem like it was just covering his skin, it was like it's blending into it.

Temari pressed her back against the large tree, she froze at the wave of the unwanted, evil chakra.

"Need some help?" Naruto spoke to Sasuke but didn't let his eyes off of Gaara.

"No, I started this match and I will finish it."

"The chunin exams are over, Sasuke. This is even more dangerous. Not even I am getting cocky at this point. This guy's no joke."

Gaara grabbed his head and convulsed in pain as the sand tail became larger and the purple veins became wider.

"Where's the last member of their team? The puppet guy?" Sasuke also didn't let his glare leave his opponent.

"He's further back in the woods… Hinata's taking care of him."

Sasuke's eyes widened. There's no way she'll have a chance against that guy… then again, he did forfeit. But still, that might not be a good thing.

Naruto's glare softened with concern. She's strong, he knows she can do it, but does she have enough willpower to do it? He's musings about his girlfriend were cut short by Sasuke yelling.

"Watch out!"

Naruto blinked to get himself back to reality but not soon enough as the giant sand fist struck him in the gut and sent him flying before he landed on some leafy branches. He groaned and sat up rubbing his abdomen.

"Don't let your guard down, bonehead!" Sasuke dodged Gaara' s tail again. _"He saw my chidori but I can see his moves too."_ He tried using his sharingan but the excitement of the moment made him forget that he might not be able to control the mark again and he squeezed his neck and screamed out in pain before he collapsed onto the large tree branch behind Naruto, moaning in pain.

"Sasuke!" Naruto's eyes went from his teammate to the sand wielder. "Damn it!"

* * *

Kankuro panted and groaned in frustration. After countless times of trying to get to her with Crow and turning his puppet into himself nothing seemed to be able to escape her eyes. _"Shit, she can see my chakra strings! I've got to think of something quick!"_

"You can lunge your puppet at me again but all you will end up doing is making me break it into pieces. I know you do not want that, so just give up and let me go help my friends." Hinata spoke sharply. Without blinking, her eyes never left her opponent. "You witnessed my fight against Neji, you know what the byakugan can do to the human body… just imagine what I could do to wood."

Hinata didn't actually know where these confident words came from but it seemed to be working as Kankuro got back onto his feet and walked over to his puppet which was sprawled out on the ground. _"You are going to have to get an update, Crow… if she can beat me… imma need to make you into a merciless weapon."_

But when he looked up again… Hinata was gone.

* * *

" _What now?"_ Naruto stared at the cackling Gaara. Suddenly his eyes widened in realization. _"Wait, that's it! This is going to take up a lot of chakra but…"_

He formed a few hand signs and planted his hand against the tree branch he was standing on. "Summoning jutsu!"

After the small amount of chakra cleared in its place was a small orange frog with a blue vest. "S'up?"

"Huh? Who the heck are you? Where's Chief Toad?"

"I'm Gamakichi. He wasn't gonna come out of such a small about of chakra." He got interrupted by a growl. Looking in the direction it came from he yelled in surprise. "Gaah! What the heck is that thing?!"

"Grrr! I don't have time for this, I need Chief Toad to help me with this guy!"

"Sorry blondie but that ain't gonna happen. There's no way you could summon him." Gamakitchi shook his head.

"I already have, OK?!"

"What, no way! You sure don't look like it."

"Would you shut up!"

"Pay attention, you moron!" Sasuke yelled out.

Naruto snapped towards Gaara only not to meet his soulless gaze but two yellow eyes and a menacing grin as Gaara's legs were the only part of his body that was not covered in sand.

Gaara growled revealing his sharp sandy teeth and swiped his claw at incredible speed towards Naruto, but just before the claw could grab onto him…

"NO!"

Came a third familiar voice and Naruto's vision was blocked by the light blue color of Hinata's top as she pushed him away from the claw which incased her instead.

"HINATA, NO!" His heart stopped as she screamed getting squeezed by the gritty claw. Gaara laughed as he raised her higher up and squeezed even tighter making her scream out in pain. That scream had never been heard before and Naruto hoped that he would never have to hear it as he had promised to protect her no matter what. But now she was hurt and he had no clue what to do. He yelled out to Gaara to let her go and latched onto the continuously growing claw and tried to pry his girlfriend out of its grip. With all of his force the sand barely even flaked so he tried hitting it, punching, scratching, pulling, tugging… he was lost… he had been in this situation before, trying to rescue a friend from an enemy and he could always think straight and have a plan of attack. But now, he couldn't think… Hinata wasn't like all the other people he had protected, she was special… she was his world.

He panted, desperately digging his bloody fingertips into the sand. "Why?" He croaked out not expecting an answer, but like a rusty gear Hinata's head turned to face him.

"B-because… I…I l-love y-you, Na…N-Na-ru-to…"

His mouth opened and closed a few times but no sound came out.

"Chidori!" Sasuke's fist slammed into the wrist of the claw but the crater it left quickly filled out with the sand again. "Damn it! Naruto, do something you bonehead! I'll keep him busy!"

Naruto breathed heavily looking at his rival but his eyes snapped back towards his female teammate as another piercing scream left her throat. "HINATA!" He screamed out. His voice was high pitched and showed his fear.

Hinata's tears dripped onto the sand and Naruto pulled and punched harder but nothing could have prepared him for what he heard right before she had screamed again. That sickening, quiet but so terrifying sound… of breaking bones.

Any noise that Hinata made died down as her eyes closed and her head dropped forward suggesting that she had lost consciousness.

Gaara laughed again as Naruto released his grip on the claw but silence ensued after a wave of a wicked chakra passed through the air. Naruto's light blue eyes turned into a bright red, his pupils changed into slits, his hair ruffled, his nails grew into claws, his whiskers thickened and his already large canines became even more pronounced.

At the speed of light he disappeared from his spot next to Hinata and appeared next to Gaara giving him his most powerful punch yet. As gaara was sent flying the claw opened releasing a limp Hinata out of her sandy cage. Sasuke reacted quickly and managed to catch Hinata into his arms and put her safely on a thick branch. He turned to the shivering Gamakichi. "Don't let her out of your sight."

"You got it!" The toad replied not confidently at all as Sasuke jumped in the direction towards the two Jinchuurikis. When he got there he saw Gaara in a crater of dirt and sand and an enraged Naruto going in for a punch. But instead of a punch his fist opened and his fingers wrapped around Gaara's neck.

"How dare you do that to her?! You're going to pay!" He growled with a much deeper voice.

"No, Naruto Uzumaki…" Gaara spoke seemingly unfazed by basically being strangled. "You will be the one who will pay." And with that the sand gathered up and swallowed Gaara's body whole. Naruto quickly retrieved his arm before the sand started to crawl up his wrist. The mountain of sand quickly became bigger making both Naruto and Sasuke back away from it. "Where's Hinata?" Naruto demanded now with his normal voice.

"With Gamakichi, don't worry. Our only concern right now is that."

Naruto turned towards what Sasuke was pointing at to see a giant figure the sand formed into. With large claws and a long tail, a large body and a half of the unconscious Gaara hanging out of its forehead. All of a sudden the creatures eyes sparkled a bright yellow and it yelled out in joy. "Woohoo! I'm finally free!" He pumped his giant fists in the air.

"How do we beat that thing?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto looked up suddenly and ran back in the opposite direction towards the trees. "Where are you going, idiot?" Sasuke followed him up the trees until they got to Hinata and Gamakichi.

"How is she?" Naruto asked.

"She's breathing but she's still out. On top of that…" Gamakichi pointed towards Hinata's purple lower leg. "Looks like it's broken." He jumped on top of Naruto's head who brushed his fingers over the large angry bruise. "She your girlfriend or somethin'?"

"Yeah." Naruto replied brushing her bangs off of her face.

"Really?" Gamakichi asked but was interrupted by Sasuke. "Hey!"

"Stay with her." Naruto said not even looking at him.

"What? I can just let y-"

"Just stay with her!" Naruto yelled turning to face him, his eyes turning red again.

Sasuke sighed and Naruto wordlessly jumped back towards the celebrating creature.

"Ah, it feels so good to be out!" The creature was still shouting and cackling.

"What the heck is that?" Gamakichi yelled. "Whatcha gonna do now, kid?"

Naruto took a deep breath and bit his thumb. _"Please work."_ Making a few hand signs he roared. "Summoning jutsu!" but this time he felt himself rise from the ground as a great amount of smoke surrounded the area. When the smoke cleared the great Chief Toad came to be. Sasuke's jaw dropped. "How did he…?"

Gamabunta blew smoke out of his pipe and looked at the giant in front of him.

"Shukaku?"

"Wow, you actually did it, blondie!"

"Gamakichi, what are you doing here?"

"Just hangin' around."

"Hey, chief… you know this guy?"

"Yes, that's Shukaku the one tailed beast."

"The… what?" Naruto blinked in shock. "Like me… he's just… like me."

Anyway pops, that big sand thing was pickin' on me."

"Pops?" Naruto blinked.

"Was it now?" Gamabunta's eyes narrowed."Well Uzumaki, I guess it's your lucky day, you are getting me in for a fight." He gripped the handle of his dagger.

"Alright! Then let's take this guy down, believe it!"

"Huh?" Shukaku frowned. "No way you re shovin' me back in, you old frog."

"Why you!" Gamabunta jumped towards him and got his dagger buried deep into his shoulder. He turned the blade and pulled it up swiftly ripping off Shukaku's arm. The arm fell into the clearing and crumbled into a pile of sand and the dagger flew across the clearing impaling the ground.

"No! Aw man, my arm!"

"So how do we get him?" Naruto frowned.

"That person on top of his head… is that his jailor?"

"Yeah, Gaara."

"He has, so to speak, fallen asleep awakening his prisoner. All we have to do to put the demon back where it belongs is to wake him up."

"How do we do that?"

"One good whack on the head should do the trick, but for that we need to get closer to him so hold on tight." He warned before going in for another punch. As he got close enough he tried to hold onto Shukaku but failed finding that he couldn't get a good enough grip onto him.

"Damn it." He skidded away.

"What now?" Naruto blinked.

"I can't get a hold onto him and I can't reach my weapon now, you have to transform me into something with fangs and claws!" He yelled dodging Shukaku's sand bombs.

"Woah, hold on a second!" Naruto tried to maintain his balance.

"Think quick, kid. I won't last much longer!"

"Ok, ok, alright! Uuhhh… fangs and claws, fangs and claws, fangs and claws… got it! **Transform!** "

A thick cloud of smoke covered the area and a menacing growl came from the smoke. The nine tails swirled in the air as the orange fur was now apparent along with a mouthful of sharp teeth. The now transformed Gamabunta ran towards Shukaku and dug his claws into his sandy flesh as well as biting his remaining arm. Shukaku yelled out trying to release himself but wasn't able to after the tails wrapped around him. Naruto ran down the fox's head and prepared to hit Gaara but as soon as he stepped onto Shukaku the sand started to wrap itself around his limbs stopping his just as he got in front of Gaara.

"No! I can't… I won't… give up… ever!" An image of Hinata's pale face flashed in front of his eyes as they closed shut and his forehead made contact with Gaara's in a strong punch. Gaara's eyes snapped open and Shukaku screamed.

"Noooo! I just got free! Aaarrrgghhh!" His eyes lost the yellow spark and the purple veins on his body turned brown as he slowly crumbled away onto the ground.

The creature and the exhausted Gamabunta were now gone which meant that there was no support for the two jailors as they both flew towards the ground but just before they made contact with the dirt Gaara got caught by Temari's fan and Naruto got caught by… Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto whispered, his eyes half closed.

"How...?"

Naruto slowly turned towards the source of the voice.

"How are you so strong?" Gaara mumbled out. The blood from the blow dripped down his nose. "I don't understand... I made myself a deadly weapon... I lived only for myself and protected no one. I had no one get in my way. My concern was only towards myself and yet you still beat me... How...?"

Naruto's eyes met his. "You know... you and I are a lot alike... more than you know..." Gaara blinked but stayed silent. "The darkness... the pain of being alone... the pain of being hated by everyone... It's horible... I know how you feel cuz that's how I've felt my whole life... we're the same..."

"You've got a demon within you as well?" Gaara finally spoke.

"Yeah, and mine is even worse than yours." Naruto continued. "And yet, unlike you I hadn't given up hope of being happy. I kept trying, I never gave up and I did it... I found friends, I'm not alone anyomore, I'm not sad anymore. If you worry only about yourself your strength defeats purpose. To protect the people around you, the ones who care about you even the ones tht don't... to give your life for them... that's what true strength is."

"Protecting other people? Is that how you got so strong Naruto Uzumaki?" Gaara's glare softened.

"Yeah, maybe you should try it too... give happiness a chance... the pain will go away." Naruto smiled slightly.

Gaara stayed silent for a bit before his face wore a saddened expression. "Temari... Kankuro... I'm sorry..."

The two looked at him in disbelief that he had just apologized to them. "It's alright." Kankuro asured him and Temari nooded in agreement.

"Let's go home. I shall see you again Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto nodded and with that they were off.

"Sensei?"

"Pakkun led me here… I watched you the whole time and I'm glad I made the decision not to step in. You and Sasuke both did well." Kakashi gave him his one eyed smile.

"Hinata?" Naruto blinked weakly.

"She'll be okay, the medics have already taken her away."

Naruto sighed in relief. "Thank God…" His eyes finally closed fully.

Kakashi lifted Naruto and walked towards Sasuke who was now just a few feet away from him. "Come Sasuke, we need to go back to the Village. After all… since Orochimaru left we've been left with a short hand."


	23. The aftermath

**A/N:** Sorry this took so long I've just been very busy and I kinda ran out of ideas, if you have an idea for a plot twist or anything like that I'd like to hear it :-P but hopefully all of you who read my stories could please stay patient and enjoy! 3

Orochimaru is gone… still alive unfortunately, but gone… However, it is far from peaceful in the village. Some homes and buildings have been badly damaged so everyone in the village gathered in the streets to help clean up the rubble, the fallen threes and walls and to help the wounded. Among them was Lord Third as well. He was lying in the hospital surrounded by multiple medics who were desperately trying to save his life. He was clinging on by a thread.

On the other side of the hospital, Naruto was limping down the hallway in his hospital clothes and a bandage around his forehead. He was desperately looking around and panting in fear.

"Naruto, why aren't you in your room?" A familiar voice scolded him.

He turned around to face the owner of the voice. "Iruka-sensei, where's the Old Man?!" Naruto asked quickly swallowing audibly.

Iruka's expression softened as he walked up to his favorite genin and ruffled his blonde hair. "Look, the medics are doing their best to save him as we speak, you need to go back to your room, there's nothing we can do but wait."

"T-to save him? Is it really that bad?" Naruto's voice cracked and his eyes got watery.

"Naruto…" Iruka sighed. "Lord Hokage performed a forbidden jutsu on Orochimaru to disable him so he could no longer use his arms. The jutsu was successful but it takes the life of the caster. It's a miracle that he's still alive."

"Naruto's eyes widened in shock. "Do… do you think he'll…"

"I'm sure he'll make it, we have to believe in him, don't we? That's all we can do right now." He said gently, rubbing Naruto's shoulder to comfort him.

Naruto nodded and swallowed again. "Are you ok, sensei?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a couple of scratches. How are you recovering?"

"I'm fine, I don't understand why I have to just lay in bed and do nothing!"

"At least stay for just a bit longer until the nurses are sure you can go. Why don't you go and be with Hinata?"

Naruto closed his eyes and a tear threatened to escape. "I can't… she's in surgery… I heard the doctor say that it's worse than it looks…"

Iruka blinked and sighed sadly. "I'm sure she'll be fine, she has you to believe in her."

"… I couldn't do anything…" Naruto mumbled.

"Huh?" Iruka kneeled down to hear him better.

"I couldn't get her out of that stupid sand! I got her hurt and I promised to protect her!" He yelled angrily, the tears finally came.

"This isn't your fault Naruto, you stopped Gaara from doing any damage to the Leaf, you protected the Village. You, Hinata and Sasuke did it together. You should be proud of yourself. I am, and I know that Hinata and Hiruzen are too."

"You are?"

Iruka nodded and smiled. "Now go and rest, ok?"

Naruto nodded hesitantly. "I'll see you later, sensei."

* * *

He slowly dragged himself back towards his room. That unsettling feeling was still creating a hard lump in his stomach. He could only wait to see if the Hokage will make it and if Hinata will be ok.

But a few steps later the feeling became too much. He slapped his hand over his mouth and rushed to the bathroom. Walking in he looked at himself in the mirror and the urge to throw up stopped but sweat still trickled down his face. He started to remove the bandage wrapped around his forehead. Finally managing to take it off, he pulled up his bangs revealing his bloody forehead. Turning on the sink and washing his face he looked in the mirror again to discover that the patch of blood was the only thing on his forehead.

"Well, of course there's nothing there, idiots!" He threw the bloody bandage on the floor and sighed. Why did they bandage him anyway? They know that his wounds heal fast, don't they?

Taking a deep breath, he ran his finger through his hair and tried to calm himself down before slowly walking out of the bathroom. But on his way back towards his room he saw someone he definitely wasn't expecting to see… Hinata's father talking to the doctor. He ran up to them and they looked at him in surprise.

"Is she ok?" He quickly asked.

"Yes, her right lower leg is broken along with a couple of the ribs, but she is expected to make a full recovery in a month or so." The doctor answered.

"Ribs?!" Naruto looked at him in shock.

"Do not worry, the damage is minimal."

Naruto loudly sighed in relief. "Can I see her now?"

"Yes, I had left her bedside just a few minutes before." Hiashi spoke.

Naruto nodded but just as he was to bolt into her room he stopped and turned towards Hiashi with a determined look on his face. "Look, she was awesome, ok? She might have lost the preliminaries but she fought well. She's tougher and stronger than you think and the only reason she's this injured is because she tried to protect me. She's brave and you should be proud of her."

Hiashi looked at him before nodding.

Naruto turned to go but he was stopped when the doctor spoke. "Try and be quiet. She's still unconscious and she needs rest."

Naruto nodded and finally opened the door of her room. Peeking inside he felt like crying when he saw her motionlessly laying there, the covers up to her neck with tubes all around her. He walked up next to her and quietly looked at the thin tube going under her nose. The beeping of her heart monitor was the only sound in the room.

He quietly pulled a chair up next to her and sat down gently rubbing her arm through the covers. If felt like he was sitting there forever but it had probably been just minutes before a soft knock was heard on the door. He walked up to the door and opened it to reveal Sasuke standing there with a serious expression on his face.

"How is she?" He asked.

"Fine, I guess." Naruto replied in a rusty tone.

"You guess?" Sasuke frowned.

"Her leg's broken and some of her ribs are too. Doc says it's nothing serious but she probably won't be able to walk for a while… and I don't know when she'll wake up…" Naruto looked down sadly.

"We'll have to wait and see." Sasuke replied. "And by the way… the Hokage's out of surgery. He's critical so you can't see him but he made it."

Naruto quickly looked up at his teammate. His jaw fell down along with him as his legs gave out. He sighed deeply and put his hands over his face. "Thank God… Old Man…"

Sasuke looked at him for a moment before speaking. "So when can you get out of here? The Village needs to get fixed."

Naruto exhaled deeply and getting up he walked up to Hinata and placed a kiss on her forehead before turning back towards Sasuke. "Let's go."

* * *

As the two walked down the noisy streets people ran left and right cleaning up the mess, they wasted no time wanting to vent out their frustrations. Naruto walked up to one of the shopkeepers who struggled with a large wooden crate.

"Here, let me help."

"I don't need **your** help." The shopkeeper groaned as he tried to lift the crate once again.

"Sure looks like you do." Naruto added quietly.

The man panted and let the crate drop to the ground before growling in frustration and spitting onto the ground.

Naruto smiled and summoned a clone, lifting the crate no problem. "Where to?"

The man blinked in shock before pointing to his shop on the left.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow before turning his gaze towards a few short women who were trying to reach a stain on the top of the window. "Hn."

* * *

Hinata's eyelids slowly parted but they closed again as she was blinded by the lights above her. After her eyes finally adjusted to the brightness they gazed around the room trying to figure out where she was. She recognized it as the hospital as soon as the sharp smell of disinfectants hit her nostrils. She wiggled her nose feeling the tube uncomfortably scratching the inside of her nose. Her hands slowly moved to her sides as she attempted to sit up but a sudden pain in her abdomen caused her to drop back down on her pillow as she let out a soft cough. The pain made the room spin and her hands went numb and she gave up on trying to move. Why did it hurt so much? Why was she all alone? What was happening around her?

" _Naruto… where are you… please… I need you…"_

* * *

Naruto's head snapped up towards the sky, his hand gripped the piece of glass he was about to throw into a bin.

" _This feeling… Hinata?"_

He threw the glass away before turning towards his clones. "You guys keep working, I'll be right back." And with that he dashed away towards the hospital.

Getting there in a heartbeat he ran through the hallway towards Hinata's room and after getting briefly scolded by a nurse for running in the hospital he finally got to her room. He held his breath and closed his eyes as he lightly knocked on the door. Hearing a familiar voice quietly say: "Yes?" his eyes snapped open and he quickly opened the door. Walking in, his blue eyes met Hinata's tired and slightly red ones and time seemed to stop for a moment.

"Oh, Naruto." She muttered out.

"Hinata… you're awake, thank God." He walked up to her bed and held her hand as he sat on the edge of it. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore… what happened to me?" She gripped his hand.

"Gaara's sand hurt you… you have a broken leg and a few of your ribs have cracks in them…" He seemed to shrink as he said that.

"Oh…" She merely choked out but she didn't think she'd be that badly injured. "What happened to Gaara… and Orochimaru… did he…?"

"Gaara and his team went back to their village along with everybody else…"

"So you beat him?" She interrupted quietly.

"Yeah, I managed… but the Leaf is badly damaged… everyone is helping to repair it… and the Old Man…" He looked down sadly and gripped her hand tighter.

"Lord Hokage? Is he alright?" She rubbed her thumb over his knuckles.

"He made it but he's not doing well… He's being monitored constantly and Iruka-sensei said that it's a miracle that he's alive after the jutsu he performed to disable Orochimaru…"

"Oh, Godness… and Orochimaru?"

"He's gone… he got away…" He responded almost angrily, grinding his teeth.

"It's ok Naruto… I will all be alright, I know it."

"Yeah… I hope so." He lifted her hand towards his lips placing a gentle kiss on it before he placed one on her lips.

And just like last time they were interrupted by a nurse walking into the room. "I'm sorry, but we have to give you a check up so your companion must leave."

Naruto nodded before turning back towards his girlfriend. "I'm going back to repairs, Sasuke's probably annoyed at this point, I'll come by later, ok?"

"Mm-hm, I love you." She whispered.

"I love you too." He whispered back. "Now rest."

* * *

Not far away from the hospital some jonin and a certain chunin were sitting in the scroll room at the Hokage building.

"What is it, Ibiki?" Kurenai asked. "You wouldn't have called us all here if it wasn't important."

"I have some bad news and some good news." Ibiki sighed.

"I'll prefer the bad news first." Kakashi added.

"Kabuto's escaped."

"What?!" Iruka and Kurenai said simultaneously.

"Him being under Orochimaru, it is not a wonder that he managed to disable the guards and escape out of the cell, but the good news is that we managed to get some answers out of him beforehand. Turns out that Lord Kazekage had been tricked with a genjutsu to get his genin to collaborate with Orochimaru on this vicious attack, the genjutsu dispersed the moment Lord Hokage performed his jutsu on Orochimaru. He took advantage of the beast Gaara posses in order to destroy the village. Gaara's nature made him seek blood but his siblings didn't have a choice, while their sensei was in it for the power Orochimaru promised him… obviously, he won't be getting it."

"Iruka massaged his forehead. "What a mess…"

"Well, I hope they learned their lesson." Kurenai shook her head.

"Iruka, go back to keeping watch on Lord Hokage and tell him this exact information as soon as he wakes up." Ibiki left the room.

"Yes." Along with Iruka.

* * *

Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long as just a few minutes after Iruka got back to the hospital and sat by his side, the Hokage finally came to.

"Iruka… I'm… alive…?" He looked at the chunin next to him.

"Yes, Hiruzen… you're still here." Iruka smiled dropping the honorific.

"Where is Jiraiya?" He choked out.

"Huh? I… I don't know… he's outside somewhere helping with the repairs, why?" Iruka was surprised at his sudden request.

"I need you to bring him to me… immediately…"

"Right away, sir."

* * *

Naruto sat on a roof of a building, collecting the broken roof tiles in the setting sun, but the sunrays were suddenly replaced by a large shadow. Naruto looked up to see who it was and he blinked in surprise. "Pervy Sage."

"Go home and pack some gear, we have a mission to complete." Jiraiya grinned.

"What? A mission? Now?!"

"Yeah, now. Hokage's orders."

"Hokage's?!" Naruto abruptly got up causing the pile of tiles to collapse. "He's awake? Can I see him?!"

"Yes, you can. Then pack some stuff and meet me at the main gate as soon as possible." Jiraiya disappeared in a blaze of leaves.

Naruto wasted no time getting to the hospital where he ran into Iruka and begged him to let him in the room, and after scolding him for being too loud Iruka finally let him in. Seeing the Almighty Hokage laying in bed covered in bandages and tubes and for once looking his age, made Naruto's heart ache.

"Old Man…"

"Ahh, Naruto… I heard about your battle, well done." Hiruzen smiled ignoring the pain from his bruised cheek.

"Forget about that Old Man, I'm worried about **you**!" He wiped his tears before they dripped down his face.

The Third chuckled. "Do not worry about me, but I assume that Jiraiya has told you about the mission?"

"Yeah, but he didn't tell me what it is."

"Well, I will tell you then." Hiruzen cleared his throat. "You will be going on a quest to search for an important person whom I must see as soon as possible and bring her back to the Leaf."

"Ok but… how long could this take?" Naruto asked.

"Maybe around a month." Iruka chimed in.

"A month?!" Naruto's eyes widened. _"But… Hinata…"_

"This is important to me I so I have faith in you."

"No worries, Old Man! I'll bring her to you for sure! That's a promise, believe it!" He pumped his fist. "Alright, I'm off. Hang in there, ok?"

"Of course." Hiruzen smiled again.

* * *

Hinata sat in her room looking out the window. She had finally managed to sit up somewhat but it was still a bit uncomfortable. She couldn't remain in a laying position anymore, she wanted to hug Naruto so bad… but where is he?

Her question was about to be answered as he leaped onto the roof in front of her window. She squeaked in surprise and scrambled to open the window.

"Naruto! Where… why do you have a backpack?"

"I'm going on a mission, Hinata… and it might take a while so I came to tell you before I leave."

"You are leaving… but… but…" She sighed sadly.

He cupped her chin with his hand. "Don't worry, I'll be back as soon I can. Pervy Sage and I just need to find someone and bring him to the village. You focus on recovering, ok?"

"Ok, good luck and be careful." Her eyes became watery.

He wiped her tears away with his thumbs before leaning through the window and giving her a deep kiss which she gladly returned. "I'll see you soon." He winked at her before leaping away.

She closed the window slowly and put her hand over her aching ribs. _"Naruto… I'll recover before you get back so we can finally be with each other again…"_

"… _I promise…"_


	24. A letdown in town

"GAAAAAAAHH! Why is this so hard?!" Naruto growled looking at the water balloon in his hand.

"It's supposed to be hard, just keep trying. You won't be able to learn the Rasengan if you don't burst the balloon first."

"Alright, alright, fine! But I still don't get what a water balloon has to do with an amazingly powerful jutsu!"

"I already told you, once you burst the balloon with just your chakra it will mean that you have achieved the required amount of control over it."

"Whatever." Naruto snickered and focused on the balloon again.

Jiraiya sighed rolling his eyes. Looking forward he brightened seeing a high metal sign. "Ah, here we go."

"Hm?" Naruto looked up from the balloon and read the sign. "Atofuku town? Is that where we're headed?"

Jiraiya sighed again. "It's Otofuku town… and yea, that's where we're going."

Naruto frowned but then brightened. "Say, Pervy Sage!"

The Sanin growled. "Will you stop calling me that already?"

"Why? You are a Sage and a perv. Makes sense to me." He grinned mockingly.

Jiraiya sighed even louder. "Keep walking."

"So, why did you pick me?"

"Hm?" Jiraiya turned to him with a raised eyebrow.

"Why did you pick me to go on this mission? And why are you training me still? You had a chance to ditch me, ya know."

Jiraiya stopped, especially after hearing the quirk at the end of his sentence. "Well, if you really want to know. A long time ago the Forth Hokage was my student."

"The Fourth was your student?" Naruto looked up at him.

"Yes, and you pay such a striking resemblance to him, it's almost laughable." He continued walking. "Sorry that's the only reason I got for ya."

But Naruto was still standing there frozen. "I'm… like the Fourth?" He blinked before grinning widely. "YEAH WOOHOO!" He jumped around and threw the water balloon high in the air startling Jiraiya with his cheering.

"What?!" The Sage looked at him in confusion.

"I'm like the Fourth Hokage! I knew I was awesome!"

Suddenly the water balloon he threw above him… landed right on his head and burst, sending waves of water all around him.

Jiraiya burst out laughing.

Naruto spat out some of the water and glared at him. "Hey! You're laughing at the Hokage here you old perv!"

Jiraiya snapped towards him. "You clumsy little brat! The only resemblance between you and the Fourth are your blue eyes and your spiky blonde hair! You don't have a drop of his talent!"

"What did you say?!" Naruto yelled in anger as his wet blonde hair drooped over his eyes.

"Shut up already and just keep walking! I want to get to Otofuku TODAY!" He almost jumped in rage and marched away in the direction the sign was pointing.

Naruto took off his partly wet headband and brushed his hair away from his eyes. Grumbling curses under his breath, he continued after the Sanin.

* * *

Getting into town after a while, Jiraiya suggested that they separate in order to cover more ground, giving them a chance to gather more information, but the sly smile and blush on his face… and the fact that he was heading towards a bar with a painting of a busty woman above the doors told Naruto exactly what the Sanin was up to. He sighed in annoyance and looked around.

" _Can't believe the old man… well then, if he's not doing what he's supposed to on this mission why should I? I'll just go find somewhere to try and burst this bubble… but… the sooner I find this lady the sooner I'll get back to Hinata… AGH! Too much thinking!"_

He gripped his blonde spikes in frustration but a raspy voice drew his attention. "Hello there, young man."

He looked in the direction of the voice and saw a small booth with an old lady waving at him. "Have you ever scratched a lottery ticket? Want to test your luck?" She smiled holding up one of the tickets laid out on her booth.

"Sure, why not." Naruto shrugged.

He walked up to her booth picking a ticket.

"Take a coin from your wallet and scratch it. If you win you get a prize but if you don't I get to keep your coin."

Naruto nodded and pulled out Gama-chan. Taking out a big coin he scratched the ticket, his eyes widening as a number and a several zeros appeared as he scratched. "Oh, man."

"Oh my, what a lucky boy you are!" The old lady clapped giving him a gentle smile. Taking the ticket she scribbled something on it before going behind the booth. She returned a minute later with a nice amount of cash in her hands.

"Here is your prize! It has been a long time since someone won this amount, spend it wisely, young man."

Naruto stood there frozen with his wallet in his hands. The lady gently took the wallet from him and shoved the money in it. Patting the stuffed froggy she gave it back to him and smiled.

Naruto grinned at her. "Wow, thank you!" He reached back into his wallet and pulled out a few of the bills. "Here granny, I think you should keep this!"

"Oh! What a nice boy!" she grinned happily.

Naruto chuckled with a blush and waved her goodbye.

* * *

A few hours later he was laying on the ground in a grassy field outside of town. Breathing heavily he looked at the deflated balloons around him.

"Ah, man this is hard… Pervy Sage is probably playing me with this crap."

Meow.

"Huh?" He looked up seeing a white cat with orange spots rubbing up against his pant leg. "Get outta here, kitty. I'm try'na train." He wiggled his leg making the cat skip away from him.

He didn't like cats, mainly cuz they didn't like him. No matter which cat he looked at they all made him think of Tora.

However, the kitty didn't go away, she slowly walked towards the few water balloons left undamaged and started playing with one of them.

"Hey, let go of it." Naruto lamely ordered the cat trying to get on his feet.

The cat didn't listed and kept dribbling the balloon from left to right until it burst and the sudden splash of water made the cat screech and run to hide being Naruto's back.

"Heh, told ya." Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait… that's it!"

* * *

Somewhere in the middle of the town Jiraiya was sitting in a lounge, drinking with a few pretty ladies.

"And then I told them to get lost and never come back! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!" The Sanin finished his story making the ladies laugh, however the laugh finally stopped when a yell was heard in the lobby.

"Hey, kids aren't allowed in here!"

"Do I look like I give a shit?!" A familiar voice yelled back at the man behind the register.

"What on Earth is he doing here?" Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

Naruto angrily stomped into the room. "Finally Pervy Sage, I've been lookin' all over for ya!"

"Didn't I tell you that we'll meet at the dumpling shop when the sun goes down?" Jiraiya scolded him.

Naruto blinked in disbelief. "The sun went down a long time ago you perv! I got tired of waiting for ya cuz I finally mastered the first phase so I went searching for you! And guess what? Whenever I would ask people if they've seen "Lord Jiraiya" they wouldn't know who the heck I was talking about, but when I asked about an old perv with white hair they told me you visited every boob bar in town! Is that what you were doing all day?!"

"Listen brat, these kind of places are best for gathering information!" Jiraiya said proudly.

"So what important information have you gathered so far then, huh?" Naruto crossed his arms.

"Uh, well… I… I know she hasn't visited any of these bars in a long time which means that she's probably not in town anymore."

"And we're still here because…?"

"Well… uhh…"

"And an old lady would visit these bars because…?"

"Ehh… well…" Jiraiya paled.

"Unbelievable… this isn't a game pervy Sage! Old man third Hokage could be dead by now and you're messing around!" Naruto yelled with tears threatening to fall.

The three women who were seated around Jiraiya and who were watching this go on, got up and all embraced the blonde.

"Awww, poor little baby. Is your grandpa ill?"

"Cuties like you shouldn't cry."

"What's going on between you two?"

Naruto blinked and blushed. The women weren't being inappropriate on anything but it still felt weird.

Jiraiya looked at the scene in disbelief. "But… my ladies…"

"Let's go Pervy Sage, I wanna find this old lady and go back home to my girlfriend, believe it."

The three women let go of him and squealed. "Awww, he has a girlfriend, how cute!"

Minutes later the two were walking away from the bar.

"What the heck just happened in there…" Jiraiya mumbled to himself.

"I can't believe how much money you spent in there…" Naruto thought about the bill the guy gave to the sage as they were walking out. The numbers made him dizzy. "I'm sleeping with Gama-chan under my shirt tonight, don't you dare take any of mine!"

"Like you have any money anyway." Jiraiya looked away.

"I won big on a lottery ticket today when you left me all alone." Naruto grinned smugly.

Jiraiya's head snapped back towards him. "What?"

Naruto stuck his tongue out towards him and turned away. "Hmph!"

* * *

The next day when she sun rays snuck through the curtains, Naruto stirred in his sleep in a room they checked into. Rubbing his eyes he looked next to him at the still sleeping Sage who was snoring loudly. He got out of bed and put on his shoes, walking out of the room he didn't even bother to try and close the door quietly. Looking for the bathroom he walked through the hallway, yawning and rubbing his eyes again to try to get the blurry sleepiness out of them.

Meow.

He looked at the main entrance and saw someone familiar sneaking into the motel.

"Hey, little buddy. How'd you find me again?" He crouched down to pet the cat who purred against his touch. He smiled happily. Looks like some cats liked him after all.

After waking himself up with some cold water he returned to his room, the cat following behind him. Walking in, he saw that his teacher hasn't woken up yet. Grabbing one of his water balloons he burst it above Jiraiya's head. When the splash of water hit his face, the Sage jumped out of his sleep and shook his head.

"What the…?"

"We need to get going." Naruto replied. Taking another balloon he moved his hand around it and burst it again then he looked up at the wide eyed yet still sleepy Jiraiya. "What's the next phase?" He grinned.

"I'll tell you after breakfast."

After visiting a small restaurant the two were on their way again. Jiraiya stretched and yawned again.

"Geez, still sleepy?" Naruto commented. "How much did you drink last night?"

"Not enough, because you interrupted me."

"Can you be useful and show me the next phase? I don't wanna be lazy too."

"Just explain to me how you managed to master the first one?"

"This guy helped me." Naruto lifted the cat which was still following them and cradled it in his arms. "He played with my balloon and he tossed it left and right and it burst, so that made me think that I needed to get the chakra to go in all directions at once to get the balloon to be bumpy like it was when you did it and not smooth, and it worked!"

"Clever. By the way, that cat is a 'she' not a 'he'.

"Huh? Oh, so you're a girl, huh?" He smiled at the cat who gave his chin a gentle lick.

Jiraiya chuckled then pulled a rubber ball out of his coat and tossed it to his student. "The next phase is bursting this."

"What? Are you serious? Another ball?" Naruto complained.

"The last phase was easier because you had the water in the balloon which made it easier to gather your chakra as the water allowed you to get the chakra to flow through it making it into a sphere. However, this time there is no water so now you need to do the same thing without a medium guiding you chakra. It needs to look like this."

Jiraiya pulled out another rubber ball and held it in his hand. Focusing his chakra the surface of the ball became bumpy and it burst into pieces.

Naruto put the cat down and tried to do the same thing as with the water balloon but all he managed to do was to put a little hole in the ball and deflate it. "What?"

The ball is much firmer than the thin and weak water balloon. You're going to need to get your chakra a lot denser and stronger in order to pop this one.

"Ahhg, man!"

"The Rasengan is an A-rank jutsu. It took me years to master it so complaining won't take you anywhere."

"Years?!" Naruto's jaw dropped. "I can't wait that long!"

"Then get to it."

They walked past a toy stand and he pointed at it. "Go there and buy a bunch of these balls and practice, I'll go into town to find leads on Tsunade."

"Leads or ladies?" Naruto frowned.

"Leads." Jiraiya replied seriously as he remembered Naruto's outburst at the inn yesterday.

" _This isn't a game pervy Sage! Old man third Hokage could be dead by now and you're messing around!"_

It hurt him to admit that the kid did have a point.

* * *

Hours later Jiraiya made his way to the field his student went to only to find him slumped against a tree.

"Have you made any progress?"

Naruto jumped startled. "No… I just managed to make the hole bigger but I can't make the darn thing explode." He slowly got up on his feet visibly exhausted. "What about you?"

"I talked to several people who said they saw her in the furthest part of town so we will head there tomorrow morning."

"Great." Naruto panted.

Jiraiya turned to leave only to be stopped by the voice of his student.

"You're not gonna stay?"

"I can't babysit you kid, you need to learn this on your own, I've got my research to tent to."

"I know but… never mind…" He turned back to his rubber balls.

Jiraiya frowned and walked away.

Naruto sat on the ground and looked at the ball in his hand. A fluffy paw appeared on it. He looked at the cat and smiled. "At least you want to spend time with me." He scratched the purring cat's ears. It was almost like… the cat was smiling at him too.

* * *

Morning hit the town again and the hung over Jiraiya woke up in his bed. Looking at the bed next to him he saw that it was empty and the sheets along with the boy's pajamas were in the same position they were in last night, which means… the kid didn't even come back last night.

Arriving at the place he left him at he saw the blonde laying against the tree with the cat curled up in his lap.

He smiled before waking him up. "Hey brat, wake up, will you?"

Naruto opened his eyes and squinted as they adjusted to the light. "Pervy Sage? What time is it?"

"You slept here last night. That could be dangerous, you know?"

"I passed out. I'm trying ok?"

"I know you're trying to master it soon but that might not be possible."

"I know…" Naruto leaned his head against the tree in disappointment.

"Here, you need to eat." Jiraiya handed him a bag of food.

After finishing his meal Jiraiya noticed the sudden burst of energy that appeared in his student. _"All it takes is some food… just like his mother."_

Naruto fed the last small piece of meat to the cat which happily ate the whole thing.

"Here, before it melts." Jiraiya opened a double bright blue popsicle and popped it in half handing one to the blonde.

Naruto grinned and took it.

"I'll stay here to overlook your training for a bit then we'll head out."

Naruto looked up at him swallowing a bite of the popsicle. "Really?"

The Sage nodded.

"Awesome! Let's go kitty!"

Jiraiya smiled at his student.

" _Who knew he would turn out exactly how you wanted him to be, Kushina? Despite being treated like an outcast his whole life, he didn't let anything break him."_

He was brought back out of his thoughts by Naruto's voice.

"Can cats eat popsicles? She's looking at me all weird."

Jiraiya blinked for a second before he burst out laughing.

" _Always putting everyone else before himself… Minato… I know he would have made you proud."_


	25. The bet

"YEAAHHH! I DID IT! I DID IT!" Naruto shouted after finally managing to burst the rubber ball. "Ahhh, finally!" But his smile suddenly disappeared and was replaced with a grimace as he hissed at the pain the chakra burns on his hands were causing.

"Excellent. Now take a break and let your hands heal… cuz I don't want to have to feed you." Jiraiya commented taking another bite of the cooked fish.

Meow.

He looked down in confusion as the kitty nibbled on a piece of fish.

"She's still here?"

"She won't leave me alone, it's weird." Naruto slowly sat next to him groaning a bit. "Seems like she likes me, huh?" He looked at the cat in confusion.

"What's so strange about that?" Jiraiya asked equally confused but for a different reason.

"Usually cats would scratch the hell outta me as soon as I get close, but not this one."

"Hmmm?" Jiraiya looked at the cat and a bit of suspicion fell into his mind. His brows furrowed and he leaned towards the cat, getting closer to her face he squinted and examined the cat's eyes for any trace of a genjutsu or any kind of illusion, but all he got from his examination was a soft lick on the nose.

"Yeah, definitely a real cat…" He mumbled to himself. "I can't sense any excess chakra flow in her body."

"Whah?" Naruto asked with his mouth full of food as he cocked his head at the Toad Sage.

"Nothing, nothing… now finish eating and we'll move on to the next phase of the Rasengan."

"Allhrighh!" The blonde yelled gulping down a bowl of rise.

Jiraiya chuckled. _"He's so easy to distract… I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing…"_

* * *

A half an hour later Jiraiya got up from his seat on a nearby log and looked at his panting student. "Hey."

"What?" Naruto barked out sharply, annoyed at his inability to gather his chakra in a sphere in his palm just like the Sage had. He looked back at the large spiral crater on the tree next to him and sighed.

"I'm going back to town to investigate, you stay here and keep trying. If you could master the first two phases I'm confident you'll master this one as well." He turned and started walking. _"He's a mess but he's making amazing progress…"_

"Fine." The blonde looked at his hand and the spiral the Sage drew on his palm.

"And remember to concentrate your chakra and your mind solely on your palm."

"I know, I know…" He turned and looked at him. "Hey, Pervy Sage?"

Jiraiya stopped and turned back to his pupil. "Hm?"

"When you were training to master the first and second phase… did it take you as long as it took me?" He asked somewhat shyly.

"No." Jiraiya replied before turning away with a hidden smile and Naruto's head slumped down in disappointment.

"It took me way longer." Jiraiya added before walking away.

Naruto's head snapped back up in surprise and a slight blush appeared on his cheeks. He looked back at the crater in the tree before putting his hands on his hips and taking a deep breath with his eyes closed. Slowly opening his eyes and glancing towards the remains of the rubber balls on the ground he whispered to himself:

"I'm awesome…"

Meow.

* * *

"I've never seen such a loser…" The casino owner continued as Jiraiya was writing him a check to cover the lady's debt. "And after that I even heard that she visited every gambling place in town and didn't win a dime… what bad luck…"

"That's her alright… thank you for your help." He handed the man a signed check.

"I think I should be thanking you, this is a lot of money."

"It's alright." The Sage got up. "I'll be off now, have a nice day." With that he walked out onto the street and looked up and the soon setting sun. "I better go see how Naruto's doing."

* * *

After arriving onto the empty field he saw the blonde laying on the ground panting and the cat licking the burn on his hand. The field was a mess and based on a few holes in the ground the kid even missed the tree a couple of times.

"Still didn't make any progress?"

The blonde sprung up startled by his mentor's voice and yelled back. "I'm freakin' trying, OK?!"

Jiraiya chuckled a bit then after a few moments of silence he finally spoke up.

"I know where she is…"

…

"What?"

"I said… I found her."

Naruto sat up as his eyes widened. "You found her… you actually found her? Why didn't you bring her with you then?"

"Well, I didn't physically see her but…"

"Oh, you with that shit again!" Naruto snapped. "Did you… or did you not… find her?!" He pounded his fist against the ground in anger.

"I didn't see her but I know where she's been."

Naruto rolled his eyes and groaned and the cat sniffed his face in curiosity.

"Look, the sun is setting and your hands are way too burned, let's call it quits for today and go get something to eat. We'll go back to our room and search for her together in the morning."

"Fine…"

Meow.

* * *

Walking through the streets they noticed that they were crowded as usual and they were many drunk people tumbling around and singing. An attractive young woman with a skirt that was way too short, took a sip from her wine then waved at the Sage and blew him a kiss. Jiraiya giggled perversely and returned the cheesy finger wave with a slight blush.

Naruto punched his back in annoyance. "Can we go somewhere to eat now? I'd puke right now but my stomach is empty."

Jiraiya signed in frustration and looked around. "Fine, let's go in here."

Naruto looked at the suspicious bar the perv was pointing at. "Are you serious? I'm a minor! Can't we find a nice ramen shop or something?!"

Jiraiya groaned. "Listen kid, these kind of bars provide a good source of information! Plus, they do have food in here, now come on."

Naruto wasn't satisfied but he had had enough. Walking in, they started scoping out the place. At one point Jiraiya looked at a lady sitting at the farthest table. "Eehhh?" He squinted his eyes and cocked his head at her.

The blonde exchanged glances between the woman and him and scratched his head in confusion.

Suddenly, the Sage pointed at her and yelled out: "TSUNADE!"

"HUH?!" Naruto's eyes widened in shock.

The poor cat got startled by the scream and jumped up into Naruto's arms.

At that moment the woman stood up and yelled back. "JIRAIYA?!"

The woman sitting next to her squeaked along with her pig, the old man sitting on their left threw his cigarette in the air, startled by the sudden outburst, and some guy in the back choked on his sushi roll. After that the whole place grew silent.

"Finally." Jiraiya started walking towards the two women.

Naruto looked at the woman in awe and confusion. _"An old lady in her fifties… huh, Pervy Sage…?"_ He shook his head and walked up to them.

* * *

Minutes later they were all seated at the table. Naruto was shoving fish in his mouth, the pig was neck deep in a bowl of rice, the other woman was sitting quietly at the table petting the cat in her lap, while Tsunade and Jiraiya were drinking sake.

Shizune glanced at the Sage. _"To think of meeting the other two Sanin on the same exact day…"_

"So…" Tsunade pulled a deck of cards out of her bosom and started shuffling them. "What are you doing here? And who's the brat you've got with you?" She gave him half the deck.

Jiraiya shuffled the cards and calmly answered. "Actually, I'm out here looking for you… and this brat is Naruto Uzumaki."

Tsunade blinked masking her shock and looked at the other blonde. _"This kid… is the Nine-Tails? So he lives…"_

Naruto took Jiraiya's empty plate and put it to the side and raised his brow at the lady staring at him.

Tsunade analyzed his face, secretly admiring his resemblance to his parents.

She wasn't the only one though… Shizune was also glancing at the boy. _"It's really him?"_

The pig sniffed the air and grunted as if it read his owners mind and confirming her thoughts by sensing the darker chakra inside the boy.

"And why exactly, were you looking for me?" Tsunade focused on Jiraiya once again.

"Because… the Village hidden in the Leaves has made a decision…"

Munch munch.

"… to name you as the Fifth Hokage."

Tsunade's breath got stuck in her throat.

Shizune's breath got stuck in her throat.

Naruto's breath and the fish got stuck in his throat.

Jiraiya looked at his fellow Sanin calmly as Naruto choked on the fish.

As if the people in the bar didn't get enough heart attacks, another fight ensued after Naruto got furious about the lady degrading and disrespecting the position of Hokage after declining it. Shizune gripped both the cat and the pig in disbelief after her mistress put her foot on the table and yelled out: "You wanna take this outside, kid?!"

She was red in the face and not just from the amount of sake she drank, but she couldn't be that drunk to challenge a kid to a fight.

* * *

Now standing outside the bar with an angry Naruto facing her, Tsunade put up her pointer finger showing it to the blonde who just looked at her confused.

"One finger… is all I'm going to need to beat you."

Naruto's gulped slightly and Jiraiya rolled his eyes.

"Please stop before you actually hurt him." Shizune begged.

"Please… he'll only be hurting himself... after he loses."

Naruto growled and charged her but as soon as he got near her she flicked her finger and sent his headband flying before flicking his forehead and sending **him** flying. He tumbled away from her and rubbed his red forehead. Shizune was by his side in seconds. "Naruto, are you alright?" She asked in worry but he just ignored her still angrily staring at the blonde woman.

"You think that's gonna stop me? I never go back on my word and I never give up! I'm gonna make you take back everything you said about the old man because someday I'm gonna be Hokage too! That is my dream! And I won't let anyone crush it!"

Tsunade gasped silently as an image of the deceased lover and younger brother flashed in front of her eyes as she could hear them repeat those words.

Naruto's heartbeat quickened. _"That's it! She's distracted, now's my chance!"_

He got up and quickly started focusing his chakra in his hand then charged her again. Tsunade popped back from her thoughts right before impact and blocked the ball of chakra before it hit her. The jutsu hit the ground beneath them making a large crack in it. She then pushed away the blonde who got stuck in the crack as she looked at the Sage.

"Jiraiya… are you the one who though this brat the Rasengan?! Are you out of your mind? He's going to kill himself with this jutsu!"

"I know he can take it."

"Hmph, he can't even spin the chakra properly."

Naruto jumped up right after Shizune helped him out of the crack. "Just you wait, I'm gonna master this jutsu in three days, believe it!" He stuck out three fingers towards her and she noticed the chakra burns on his hands, but she also noticed that they were already starting to heal.

"Let's make this interesting then, if you're so confident. Are you willing to make a bet on it?" She smirked.

"Hm?" The blonde raised an eyebrow.

"I'll give you a week. If you can master the jutsu by then I'll admit I'm wrong and that you're worthy of becoming Hokage… I'll even throw in my necklace."

"You wouldn't…" Shizune was shocked by her statement. "But Lady Tsunade that-"

"You really think he's gonna win? No chance."

"Why would I need your stupid necklace anyway?" Naruto pouted not pleased about what he's getting from the bet.

"That necklace is worth three mountains of gold mines." Jiraiya replied somewhat lamely.

Naruto's jaw dropped and his eyes sparkled.

Jiraiya rubbed his forehead. _"It's all about money with this kid…"_

"Fine, it's a deal. And… you have to go back to the Leaf with us!" He said picking up his headband from TonTon and tying it around his forehead.

"Fine… but if I win…" Tsunade smirked. "You have to give up on trying to become the Hokage… and… I get to keep all of this money." She said pulling out Naruto's almost overflowing frog shaped wallet from behind her back.

Naruto squeaked in shock and paled as he dug around his pockets realizing they're empty. "Hey! Give that back!" He squeaked.

"A deal is a deal." She put the wallet away and started walking back to the bar. "Let's go Shizune, I need more sake."

Shizune followed her mistress in frustration along with her pig.

Jiraiya patted his student's shoulder. "Relax, I trust you can win."

"I hope so…" He looked at the ground sadly. "And I was going to get Hinata something nice for when I got back to the village…"

Jiraiya blinked in surprise and smiled to his student. "And you will… let's g back to our room."

* * *

Back at the bar Shizune stopped the waiter from getting them another bottle of sake. "I cannot believe you did that… that was so low of you, he's just a kid…"

"You dare tell me what to do, Shizune?" She asked rhetorically glaring at her before getting up to leave. The wobble in her step suggesting that she's had more than enough to drink for tonight.

* * *

Naruto tossed and turned in his bed. Hinata, the old man Hokage and the Rasengan couldn't leave his mind and now he has to put his money and his precious Gama-chan on his list of worries too.

" _I'll win… I'll win for sure…"_ He thought. _"For Hinata… and the old man… and the village…"_

" _I'll win for all of you…"_


	26. The value in the wallet

**A/N:** Yo! Sorry this took a while but my frustrating semester just ended. Hope you will stick around for the next chapters and for now I hope you enjoy this one!

* * *

The Leaf Village was on its way to going back to the way it was before the damage. The villages were putting their arguments aside and helping their fellow grumpy merchants to fix the streets and buildings. But the villagers were not the only ones helping, the ninjas were spending their free time assisting the renovations. Sakura was one of them as she was currently doing the more practical task of cleaning dirty windows on her building. Wiping the suds of the glass she blinked in surprise at the reflection she saw behind her. She turned around to face the person.

"Hinata? What are you doing here? Isn't it early for you to be released from the hospital?"

Hinata smiled. "I feel fine now so I insisted on being released so I could help out. Is there anything I can do here?"

Sakura looked at her for a few seconds before smiling. "Ok, but no physical tasks for you, I can tell by your walk you aren't fully recovered yet."

"I'm fine, really." Hinata waved her hands in front of her.

"Don't give me that, I bet that Naruto wouldn't even let you go outside until you're fully recovered let alone clean." Sakura winked at her.

Hinata opened her mouth to say something but just closed it and blushed. "J-just give me t-the sponge."

Sakura giggled and shook her head.

* * *

"ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!" Naruto yelled at the tree he just hit with his unfinished Rasengan. "Why the heck are the craters getting smaller?!"

"Because you are exhausted."

He jumped a bit at the unexpected answer. Turning around he saw Shizune walking towards him with a basket in her hands. "You can attempt the jutsu so many times before you're completely out of chakra." She continued. "A jutsu like this could cost you your life if you attempt it more than a few times in a battle."

"I know that!" The blonde defended himself. "But I have tons of chakra! This has never happened before."

"Have you trained non-stop for almost 24 hours without stopping before?"

He opened his mouth a few times. "I… don't think so…"

"See?" She put the basked down and sat on the grass next to it. "You didn't come back last night… have you slept?"

He turned away a bit embarrassed. "Well… does passing out count?"

Shizune sighed and shook her head. "Have you eaten anything since?"

He shook his head slowly not facing her.

She looked at him sadly before smiling and opening the basket. "Here." She pulled out a bento and a pair of chopsticks and handed it to him.

He turned around and blinked in surprise before smiling awkwardly. "Thanks a lot but… that's gonna have to wait a little till my hands stop tingling." He turned his palms in her direction giving her a glimpse of his chakra burns.

"Naruto! Those are severe! I'll get you some ointment, I'll be right back." She began to get up but was stopped by his voice.

"No, no, no! I already have some." He waved his burnt hands to stop her.

"You do?"

"Yeah, here." He took the pot out of his pocket and hissed in pain dropping it on the ground. Gasping a bit he was about to pick it up but was beaten to it by Shizune.

"That was quite a worried expression you had there for dropping an ointment. Wooden pots like these don't break that easily." She commented opening it.

"Yeah well, my girlfriend made it for me so…"

Shizune looked at him in shock. "Your what?"

Naruto blushed and swallowed feeling uncomfortable under Shizune's shocked glare. "Geez, why is everyone always so surprised about that?"

Shizune chuckled. "It's just that… you are so young."

"So…?" He squeaked looking away making her laugh.

"Here, I'll apply the ointment on your palms and you tell me a bit about her, hm? She made this, you say?"

"Yeah, she likes to press flowers and herbs and stuff."

"I see. I'm a medical professional, I can tell how well-made this ointment is. The texture is very smooth and I think I can guess what ingredients she used by the smell." She said gently rubbing the ointment into his hands hiding a frown as she watched the wounds slowly close. She wondered…

"Say… Naruto?"

"Hm?"

"Do you know why your wounds heal this quickly?" She didn't think there was harm in asking as if he did not know she would say that the healing was due to the ingredients in the ointment.

He visibly swallowed. "Y-yeah… do you?"

"Yes." She looked at him seriously closing the ointment.

"How do you know?" He asked quietly.

"I stayed in your village a long time ago… I know what happened to the beast and I know your name but I never thought I would meet you."

"Why?" He asked even quieter.

"Well, mainly I didn't know if you lived or not."

"Are… you scared of me?" He looked down.

"Not a bit." She smiled.

Naruto looked at her. "Does the grumpy lady know?"

"She does. And she's not always like this. She's a good person, she's just going through a lot at the moment."

"Going through a lot of money you mean?"

Shizune sighed hiding a smile. "Gambling helps distract her a bit even if she keeps losing. I'd rather she stopped but I can't order her to."

"How can losing money make her feel better? Her snatching my wallet didn't make me feel any better. Especially since I just won all that money and she's gonna waste it on sake and her gambling shit." Naruto was getting more upset the more he talked. "And what will she do with Gama-chan when she wastes all the money, throw him away?"

"Gama-chan?" Shizune raised a brow in confusion.

"You can't let her do that! You have to get him back! Gama-chan wasn't a part of the bet! She only wants the money, right?" A bead of sweat traced down his now pale cheek.

"Oh, you mean your froggy wallet?" She giggled.

"Yeah, it means a lot to me, I have to have it back."

"Did you girlfriend give it to you as well?" She asked handing him the ointment.

He put it back in his pocket. "Actually, I have no idea who gave it to me…"

"How so?"

"It's a long story…"

"Well then, why don't you tell me about it after you eat something, hm?"

Naruto grinned and nodded vigorously. Ten minutes later, after he gulped down the whole bento box in record time, he took another sip of water and began telling Shizune the story.

"You know… when I was little I got bullied and attacked a lot…" He stared into space with a sad expression.

Shizune hung onto his every word gripping the water bottle in her hands.

"And if I ever wanted something… I never got it…" He looked at his almost fully healed hands. "One day… a few days before my birthday, I was walking by a shop and I saw the wallet in the window. I've always liked frogs and toads so I really liked it… I know it seems childish but… I don't know, I just liked it…"

Shizune nodded suppressing a smile.

"But… I didn't have enough money to buy it so… I just looked at it through the window for days… I've never bought anything like that for myself so I was thinking whether to ask the old man Hokage to give me a few ryo so I could get it."

Shizune's smile dropped.

"It's weird to think about it now cuz it was cheap actually…" A small smile sneaked through his lips.

"In the end I decided to wait until the old man gave me my allowance and then I would buy it. But the next day I looked into the window and it wasn't there anymore…"

Shizune blinked a bit confused.

"I was so sad cuz there were so many other wallets there. A cat, a dog, a bird, a tiger… out of all of those why would someone get the frog one? I mean, I remember catching a toad once when I was little and the other kids screamed that it was gross." He smiled suddenly. "I did scare a bully with it once though, heheh!"

Shizune matched his smile with hers.

"Anyway, I got really bummed out about it but I was used to bad things happening to me so I didn't cry about it I guess… and then on my sixth birthday someone knocked on my door which was weird cuz no one ever knocks on my door. I looked through the peep hole on my door and there was no one there so I thought it was a prank so I would walk out and someone would throw rotten eggs at me again."

Shizune cringed discretely.

"But I vividly remember that the knock sounded different… it was softer… so I opened the door and there was a box on the ground… with a note that said happy birthday… again, I thought it was a prank cuz the old man usually treats me to ramen on my birthday, he doesn't get me things cuz I told him I don't need anything."

Shizune's expression softened.

"So I open the box and there it was… Gama-chan… I still have no idea who it was or how they knew I wanted it. I asked the old man but he said it wasn't him. It was the first actual birthday present I ever got and the second time I got something I really wanted so I treasure it." He finished with a deep sigh.

"How nice." Shizune smiled but then raised a brow. "Wait, the second time?"

Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, the first thing I really wanted was to try ramen cuz I would always walk by Ichiraku and it smelt really good, heheh."

Shizune smiled. "Well, I promise to give it back to you in case you lose the bet but… considering Lady Tsunade's bet record I'd say you have a good chance of winning."

"Oh, I'm gonna win for sure just you watch!" He got up getting ready to continue training. "And then I'll have all the money I want."

Shizune paled as a thought came into her head. "Uh, Naruto? You don't plan on selling the necklace do you?"

"Huh? Well, Pervy Sage did say it's worth a lot but… why? She wanted to bet on it, not me. Why didn't she sell it when she's in debt?"

"Well, uhhh…" Shizune fidgeted with the empty bento box trying to close it. "You see… that necklace is uhhh… cursed."

…

"Say what?" Naruto blinked and suddenly yelled. "Ah! I know what she's doing! She knows she's gonna lose so she wants to stick a curse on me so I'd be broke and full of bad luck like she is! Well, fuck that stupid necklace then! She can keep it! I don't need the money!" He stomped away in anger.

"Oh dear, I shouldn't have said that…"

Naruto glared at the tree like it had eaten his last bowl of special fire chili ramen before a familiar sound distracted him.

Meow.

"Hey, where have you been?"

* * *

Later that night Jiraiya sat in his room scribbling in his notes. He gulped down the last few drops of sake he had and wondered if he required a refill after the stressful conversation he just had with his fellow Sanin. The excuses she made for not wanting to be named the Hokage and go back to the village were unbelievable. The door behind him slid open revealing a messy Naruto who just grabbed an extra pair of boxers out of his backpack and mumbled something about needing a long bath. Jiraiya chuckled. He was amazed by his student's will to master this jutsu. And there was the bet on top of that. He wanted the boy to win as well, not only because he wanted Tsunade to accept the offer but also because he really wanted her to give his money back remembering his pupil's words about wanting to get his girlfriend a gift. There was something deep in him that was telling him he would win. In his student's own words if you put your heart into it you can do anything. Believe it. After all, he did master the first two phases rather quickly. That seems even more impressive now that his former teammate commented on it during their earlier conversation.

 **Flashback:**

" _You are unbelievable, Jiraiya. Teaching a brat like that such a powerful jutsu. He's going to blow himself up into pieces." Tsunade crossed her arms over her bosom angrily._

" _If his whole life couldn't blow him to pieces no way he'd do it himself." Jiraiya calmly replied._

" _What is that supposed to mean?" She said calming down a bit._

" _Naruto's childhood was tough… way too tough for a child who was protecting a whole village from a beast." His eyes met hers and for a moment her gaze changed into a pained glance. "Everyone in his village hates him, calls him a demon and ignores him. The Fourth Hokage made a law that strictly forbade the beast from being mentioned. Those who broke the law were punished by death."_

 _Tsunade's eyes widened._

" _The adults didn't want their children to be around him so they told them to hate him for no reason so he didn't have any friends let alone someone to take care of him. The fact that he seems so carefree and spoiled despite all that's happened to him tells me clearly that he IS capable of handling such a jutsu."_

 _Tsunade listened wordlessly intrigued by the boy's reality._

" _It took him just under three and a half weeks to master the first two phases of the Rasengan, he proved he could handle it." He smiled._

" _No way… what is it that keeps him going?" Tsunade rubbed her temple._

" _He gave his word to Hiruzen that he would bring you to the village, and he never goes back on his word. It's as simple as that."_

 _Tsunade looked at her feet in shock before her hand subconsciously touched the crystal on her necklace._

" _Do you even want to win this bet?"_

 _Her head snapped up to face him._

" _Don't get your hopes up. Should have warned you but the kid told me he's never lost a bet." He grinned. "As a matter of fact, everyone who bet against him in the final phase of the chunin exams lost a lot of cash."_

" _He made it to the fin- ?! Ah, why am I surprised, of course he did!" She sighed causing Jiraiya to laugh._

" _You shouldn't repeat my mistake of underestimating the, errr, what did Kakashi call him?" He rubbed his chin. "Ah, yes… The Leaf Village's number one hyperactive, unpredictable, knuckleheaded ninja."_

 **End of flashback:**

Jiraiya smiled then rubbed his chin again. "Did I even put those adjectives in the right order?"

* * *

During their conversation Naruto was living up to that name.

" _AAAHHHCHOOO!"_

 _And just like that the large rock next to his targeted tree now has a crater in it._

" _Yeah, NOW I had to sneeze… Geez." Naruto rubbed the sweat off of his forehead. A weird noise drew his attention to his right where the cat was slowly scratching her way down a tree trunk she climbed startled by the sneeze… and the explosion following it. He stared at the kitty struggling to get back down before it jumped next to an empty tuna can._

 _He laughed at the sight. "Ate too much?" The kitty just laid back down on top of his discarded jacket._

" _How I wish I could just relax like that…"_

 _His smile fell._

" _How I wish I could ever relax…"_

 _His gaze steeled and went back to the tree as he began molding his chakra into his palm once again… and again… and again…_


End file.
